Car Seat in ACCIDENT

[UnregisteredMOM]

My Britax car seat was in my vehicle (a Honda Civic) when it was totaled. The car seat was unoccupied and looks undamaged. Do I need to buy a new one?

 

[veggiegirl228]

Yes! Sorry about your car

 

[valleyfam]

Absolutely, there is a very good chance there are stress fractures and damage to the plastic that can not be seen with the naked eye. You may want to check with the insurance company. Most will replace car seats involved in a crash.

 

[MommyShannon]

You can keep the cover to sell or use on a new seat.

 

[1mommy]

Yes, if your car is totaled every car seat in it should be totaled too. Especially with a major accident the forces applied could damage the plastic just enough to weaken it, so if you are ever in another accident it would not do it's job.

Also if you read your manual Britax says you do not need to replace after a MINOR crash, a minor crash is one that meets ALL of following criteria:

The vehicle was able to be driven away from the crash site; AND
The vehicle door nearest the child restraint was undamaged; AND
There were no injuries to any of the vehicle occupants; AND
The air bags (if present) did not deploy; AND
There is no visible damage to the child seat.

When a car is totaled it automatically is no longer a minor crash. If your insurance does not want to replace your seats please send them a copy of the manual either scanned or PDF.

 

[LISmama810]

Can you share more details of the crash? A car can be totaled without a crash meeting the guidelines above, though it would be somewhat unlikely. Also, what state are you in?

 

[jjordan]

Can you share more details of the crash? A car can be totaled without a crash meeting the guidelines above, though it would be somewhat unlikely. Also, what state are you in?

:yeahthat: Being totaled is a way of saying that it costs more to repair the car than the car is worth, so the insurance company would rather pay you the worth of the car than pay for the repairs. Depending on the type of damage, age of car, and many other factors, it is possible for a car that has been in a "minor crash" (according to the NHTSA definition, which Britax uses) to be totaled.

Some states require insurance to pay for replacement car seats in certain situations, which I think is why the pp is asking where you are located.

I hope that everyone involved in the crash is okay! Car accidents can be very scary!