Commercial truck and a convertible seat...

[badaza]

My husband has gone back to driving commercial trucks this month and would dearly love it if I (or our son, 14 months) could come with him. My instinct on this is "No way, not until he can stay seated without a hbb, maybe even a booster". Am I wrong? He says there are seatbelts in the sleeping area to put the car seat in. Also, a 14-month old in a truck all day with nowhere to go? Why does he even think it's a good idea???

Feel free to agree, disagree, I just want to know whether I'm overprotective or not.

 

[LISmama810]

When you say commercial truck, do you mean a semi? By "sleeping area," do you mean the part over the cab?

Car seats can only be installed on forward-facing vehicle seats, so I doubt the sleeping area would qualify. Even if it did, can your husband see/access him at all there?

Does your husband work for himself or work for/contract with another company? If he does, the other company might have policies against non-working passengers (especially minors). Does DOT have any regulations against it?

Your husband's insurance (or the insurance of whoever he's working for) might also prohibit it.

You could install a seat (rear-facing if no airbags) on the passenger seat. You might need a locking clip if the seatbelt doesn't lock on its own.

Even so...people put 14-month-olds in the car for long periods of time because they HAVE to, not because they WANT to. I can't imagine doing it for fun, especially while working. That's a lot of snack/meal/play/diaper breaks!

 

[badaza]

Yes, I mean a semi truck. The sleeping area is usually behind the seats, though you can have two beds one on top of the other.

My husband could not see/access our son from his seat. I have no idea on the policies from his employer and employer's insurance, but it's a good question to ask. If they forbid it, he'll take it easier than me saying no (when I do, he reacts like I'm being a big meanie or like I'm not being reasonable).

He does have a tendency to overestimate what our son can tolerate and do. As in, I accompanied him (at his behest) when he went to client's place to discuss a contract. I was to stay in the car, with the baby and it "would not take long". Well, after 15-20 minutes in the unmoving car, my then 10-month-old wanted out. Then my husband was pissed because the client saw us out of the car and in the driveway.

 

[lyn_ak]

Be sure to mention the potential hearing damage to your husband. I spend some times in trucks for my work and by the end of the day my ears are ringing. I would absolutely NOT allow my toddler in a semi without decent ear protection.