Question Infant Seat Was Dropped

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eocbwife

New member

• Nov 13, 2013

• #1

When we moved the movers sat my son's infant seat on top of one of the big wooden crates. It dropped and landed on the concrete. They crates are probably 8-10 feet high. Do you think it is still safe to use? TIA

 

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jjordan

Moderator

• Nov 13, 2013

• #2

It's the middle of the week, so you can probably get through to customer service pretty quickly if you call the manufacturer. Certainly if there are any visible signs of damage, then I wouldn't reuse the seat. Did you look if over pretty carefully?

 

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eocbwife

New member

• Nov 13, 2013

• #3

Thank you! There are no signs of visible damage. I called customer service and the lady said it should be fine if there are no signs of damage. She is double checking with another department and is going to call me back tomorrow. I feel like I should just buy a new seat, so that is probably what we will do.

 

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador

• Nov 13, 2013

• #4

I tend to err on the side of caution, so I might be overreacting, but a fall onto concrete from eight-to-ten feet in the air worries me quite a bit. That's a pretty substantial distance to fall.

Again, I might be overreacting, but I wouldn't feel comfortable using a seat that I *knew* had experienced that type of "trauma."

 

tiggercat

New member

• Nov 13, 2013

• #5

No, I would not feel comfortable using a seat that dropped from 8-10 feet! That's quite a distance, and the impact onto the concrete would likely have put stress on the seat.

Sent from my iPod touch using Car-Seat.Org

 

tam_shops

New member

• Nov 14, 2013

• #6

The movers would be insured and I'd replace it and give them the bill.

tam

 

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador

• Nov 14, 2013

• #7

tam_shops said:

The movers would be insured and I'd replace it and give them the bill.

tam

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Good point!

 

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carolyn_mtl

New member

• Nov 14, 2013

• #8

The seat should be replaced, that definitely should be considered crashed. Also, there could be damage inside the seat which is not visible, so I would not trust its outer appearance as a guarantee that the seat is fine.

 

wavegal

New member

• Nov 15, 2013

• #9

I would replace with a fall like that. If grass maybe not but concrete for sure

 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

• Nov 16, 2013

• #10

It wouldn't bother me, as long as there's no visible damage. A fall like that isn't putting stress on the harness or seatbelt connection points, where the stress will be in a crash.
Plus, I work retail, we throw a lot of things a lot of distance, by the time I'm the one gingerly trying to lower a seat to the ground from the top shelf, it's already been dropped quite a few times in the warehouse (and no, a cardboard box is not some magical energy absorbing packing material, if the seat were going to break, it would break. Carseats are tough mothers )

 

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Lee-B-

New member

• Nov 16, 2013

• #11

joolsplus3 said:

It wouldn't bother me, as long as there's no visible damage. A fall like that isn't putting stress on the harness or seatbelt connection points, where the stress will be in a crash.
Plus, I work retail, we throw a lot of things a lot of distance, by the time I'm the one gingerly trying to lower a seat to the ground from the top shelf, it's already been dropped quite a few times in the warehouse (and no, a cardboard box is not some magical energy absorbing packing material, if the seat were going to break, it would break. Carseats are tough mothers )

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But...how is all that man handling of the seat ok but gate-checking the seat on an airplane not? That sounds snotty...but it's not meant to be...I am really wondering!

 

bubbaray

New member

• Nov 16, 2013

• #12

There are those of us who don't think gate checking is horrible. There is a statement from the manufacturers association supporting gate checking as NOT equating to the seat being crashed.

http://www.saferidenews.com/srndnn/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=zNnkSQCE0ks=&tabid=352

 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

• Nov 16, 2013

• #13

Lee-B- said:

But...how is all that man handling of the seat ok but gate-checking the seat on an airplane not? That sounds snotty...but it's not meant to be...I am really wondering!

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Yeah, I don't get that, either. I'm totally cool with gate checking (in a bag, because, yeah, things are gross down there at the bottom of planes).

That's me, the tech on the edge

(In all my years, I've seen one repeated problem where the front lip of the bottom of Marathons were cracking during shipping, and Britax said it was a cosmetic problem, go ahead and use the seats. Something that's designed to take literally thousands of pounds of force in a crash is just... tough).

 

Pixelated

Moderator - CPST Instructor

• Nov 16, 2013

• #14

I'm not sure I would call a gate checked seat crashed...but it does now have an unknown history. Was it picked up and carried by the harness or adjuster strap? Was it dropped off the top of the air stairs and then loaded into the hold like I saw on the plane next to me a few months ago? The unknown makes me nervous. But I fully admit to being a very conservative tech.

 

Keeanh

Well-known member

• Nov 16, 2013

• #15

For me, I think it would hinge on whether I was making a claim anyways. I've never known a move that didn't involve a damage claim LOL. So if I was putting in a claim for other things, I would tack the car seat on and see what they say. I don't think it's "okay" to drop someone else's safety equipment 10 ft onto concrete. OTOH, if I wasn't claiming anything else, I might not bother. I wouldn't replace out of pocket.

 

tam_shops

New member

• Nov 17, 2013

• #16

Personally, I wouldn't put my child in a seat that was crashed, dropped or gate checked just b/c I don't know enough either way to make such a decision and it's not worth it to me. When a parent asks me, I tell them above and suggest they call the manufacture to see what they have to say...

Either way, if it's been dropped and potentially damaged and insurance will replace it, I'm replacing b/c it can't hurt to, but could hurt not to...

If a friend was using a seat that was dropped, I'd worry less about it than when s/he uses a seat that is expired!

tam

 

Judi

CPST/Firefighter

• Nov 17, 2013

• #17

If you aren't ok with a drop like that, you may want to start buying your seats from the manufacturer.

Signed-

Retail worker