Travelling Kat
New member
We are a European family currently living in the Caribbean. We have a European rear-facing car seat for our six-month-old (a Maxi-Cosi Cabriofix) which we also use for him on airplanes. Recently on a flight to the US we were asked to prove that the car seat is safe for air travel. I duly showed the sticker on the bottom of the seat that reads something like "E4" which I understand is the UN designated approval for child restraints that can be used on board a plane. The stewardess seemed totally unaware of the UN approval system however and nearly didn't let us have our child sit in the seat for the flight although we did in the end thankfully manage to convince her that all was as it should be with our seat.
My question is does anyone know where I could find documentation online that briefly and clearly explains the UN approval system? Something for us to take with us when we travel in case any questions arise again. I tried to look for something online but so far no luck. The car seat manufacturer's page didn't seem to have anything either on this unfortunately. Our son will soon outgrow his current seat but we are going to get him another European seat so I expect that we'll need some kind of general documentation in the future also when we travel.
And while I am here and have your attention (hopefully!), is it legal for us to use our European car seats in cars in the US and Canada on holiday or could that get us into trouble? We travel a fair bit in North America and always bring our own car seat for the baby. It never even occurred to me that this could be a problem until I read a few of the entries here today... But I am still unclear as to what the final answer is as to whether it is ok to use European seats in North America.
My question is does anyone know where I could find documentation online that briefly and clearly explains the UN approval system? Something for us to take with us when we travel in case any questions arise again. I tried to look for something online but so far no luck. The car seat manufacturer's page didn't seem to have anything either on this unfortunately. Our son will soon outgrow his current seat but we are going to get him another European seat so I expect that we'll need some kind of general documentation in the future also when we travel.
And while I am here and have your attention (hopefully!), is it legal for us to use our European car seats in cars in the US and Canada on holiday or could that get us into trouble? We travel a fair bit in North America and always bring our own car seat for the baby. It never even occurred to me that this could be a problem until I read a few of the entries here today... But I am still unclear as to what the final answer is as to whether it is ok to use European seats in North America.