Some people are clueless...

I'm at work and had a grandma call for an install appt. As is my practice, I get all of the pertinent info to address any issues ahead of time and have people properly prepared for their appt with the 2 CPSTs I work with. Today's conversation went like this:

Gma: I have a seat that needs to be installed for my granddaughter.
Me: OK, I'm happy to make an appt for you. Can you tell me what kind of seat is being installed, and the age and weight of the child?
Gma: Um, it's a Graco I think. My daughter in law got it at Walmart I think. My granddaughter is 20 mos, don't know what she weighs.
Me: Do you have the seat handy so you can look and see exactly what it is?
Gma: It's in the garage, I'll go get it.
Waiting, waiting...
Gma: OK, I think it's an Amsafe.
Me: Amsafe, haven't heard of that one. Is there any other info on the box?
Gma: No, we don't have the box. But it's actually a Century and it says it was made after Dec 2006.
Me: Hmmm...and your DIL bought it at Walmart? OK...try this...look at the back of the seat. Is there a DOM or 'Do not use after' stamped into the plastic anywhere?
Gma: Oh yes, it says 'Do not use after Dec 2006'...ooooohhhh...that's not good...my DIL is always buying things at garage sales and it's embarrassing...so I shouldn't use this seat right?
Me: No, it would be unsafe. But I can make some suggestions on seats, there is even one that's great that's only about $40 at Walmart if money is an issue.

(Proceed to tell her about the Scenera and several other options, what to look for in a seat, about the rf weight limits, getting her granddaughter's weight, being sure it's a convertible that she buys, and that she wants to have it installed rf and to read the manual, etc.)

She was very appreciative, didn't know a seat could be purchased for less than $100 so that made her very happy and she's going right out to get an appropriate seat and to destroy the seat she's currently got...then she's coming in for an inspection.

But it just makes me nuts that parents think using seats like these are ok! For pete's sake...did the mom even LOOK at the seat? It's clearly on there so I assume not. And that's just terrible. Anyway...rant over.

Phew, grandma saved the day by calling you. Amsafe is the manufacturer of the harness, I'm pretty sure (she might have read that label off the strap).

But ugh, yeah, people do lean towards clueless way too often...sigh...

What a sensible woman! I'm glad she cared enough to schedule and appt, then figured out on her own she shouldn't be using the seat she had! :thumbsup:

She says she thinks her DIL got it at Walmart, is it possible the DIL told her that so she wouldn't comment on the safety of the seat or her cheapness. That's kind of sad to lie where you got the seat, shows that you know it's not the safest thing to do.

Niea said:

What a sensible woman! I'm glad she cared enough to schedule and appt, then figured out on her own she shouldn't be using the seat she had! :thumbsup:

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exactly. she wasn't so clueless that she didn't know enough to call a CPST for install advice! :thumbsup: that she even called for professional advice puts her in the top 10% of sensible people. and remember that she's a grandma-- they didn't even have carseats when she was growing up.

Wow! What an awesome grandma!!

OK, now to be fair, I'm 42 and I could be a grandma, and regardless of the state of carseats when I was a child, there WERE carseats when someone the age of a child I could have had who has a baby now was a baby, and in any case my small children NOW are safely harnessed in non-expired seats.

But, yeah! Go grandma, for sure! I love the mental image I get of a lightbulb going off in her head when I read, "Oh yes, it says 'Do not use after Dec 2006'...ooooohhhh...that's not good..."

Just to be clear...I wasn't knocking Grandma, I thought she was great...the clueless one I was referring to was the Mom! I was thrilled that Gma called the PD and that she now will have a nice safe seat for her granddaughter. (And hopefully will check out her DIL's other seats and make sure those are good...I told her to call if she needed any assistance!)

Hevy said "She says she thinks her DIL got it at Walmart, is it possible the DIL told her that so she wouldn't comment on the safety of the seat or her cheapness. That's kind of sad to lie where you got the seat, shows that you know it's not the safest thing to do."

And that's exactly what I thought...that either Gma knew it wasn't new and likely a garage sale find and was embarrassed to tell me or that the Mom knew the Gma wouldn't be pleased about that fact so she said it was from Walmart. And if Mom lied I totally agree...if she felt the need to lie she might have had at least an intuition that it wasn't the safest way to go about thing.

I'm not against garage sales at all. I'm pretty thrifty and there are lots of things that you can get via garage sales, Craig's list, etc. that are perfectly safe and a fantastic bargain used. (Outdoor plastic play things for the kids comes to mind.) But it just totally amazes me that any mom can think that a garage sale is the right place to buy a car seat!