Have the rules changed regarding car seats???

My son was rear facing till 12 months. I also never used a booster without a harness. Our car now has raised boosters for kids. And even though both children are past the age of needing them they both use the boosters as in the car manual it is recommended till 12 due to curtain airbags and overall safety. People think I'm crazy. But I don't care. I saw a fb survey on safe n sounds page the other day. They are looking into the rear facing seats for extended periods. So maybe te manufacturers will be the ones to change before the regulations do.
And from a purely marketing perspective if SnS do this they will hold the market. As I know plenty of people who would purchase a seat like this if it were available.

So true Rouge. Most people don't realise how having so many airbags in a car is actual more dangerous for kids unless precautions are taken. (I don't know many people who actually read their car instruction manual)

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My son was rear facing till 12 months. I also never used a booster without a harness. Our car now has raised boosters for kids. And even though both children are past the age of needing them they both use the boosters as in the car manual it is recommended till 12 due to curtain airbags and overall safety. People think I'm crazy. But I don't care. I saw a fb survey on safe n sounds page the other day. They are looking into the rear facing seats for extended periods. So maybe te manufacturers will be the ones to change before the regulations do.
And from a purely marketing perspective if SnS do this they will hold the market. As I know plenty of people who would purchase a seat like this if it were available.

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Safe n Sounds will be the first to release an ERf seat, they know first hand what will happen if they don't have one ready before any regulation changes happen.SnS are also the only ones with the exception of maybe Infa that are responsive at all to campaigning from the public. Most manufacturers I have had contact with don't want to know and don't care, but SnS are willing to discuss. They also know the push is getting bigger for ERf seats, and they are taking notice. There are big financial hurdles when it comes to making an ERf seat that will comply with Australian standards. If this wasn't such a big issue I think SnS would already have one released. They want some changes in the design standard to give them more flexibility so they can go ahead. Although if they get their change I think the first ERF seat will only RF for up to a 3 year old. Our top tether plays a big role in this too I think. If they could use a different tethering style it would be easier to produce an ERF seat. It is hard to get a straight answer from anyone though, there is a lot of buck passing.

I think you're absolutely doing the right thing having your kids in boosters still. When you say you have raised boosters, do you mean factory boosters with your car, so a Volvo :) or do you have half boosters from a shop?

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I left my DS rf until about 11mo, but felt the need to turn him around coz he was looking cramped and kept trying to sit up more. But I had a friend who made her DS ff at 5mo.

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WilliamsMummy, I don't think your DS would have been uncomfy, just probably wanting to be sitting up. That's the difference between our RFing seats and European ones. Ours are designed for babies, so laying back. European ERf seats are designed for babies and older children so they can be installed more upright and most have recline options for long trips and sleeping. So by the time they are a bit older they can be sitting more upright. European seats also take up much less room in the car for this reason, they don't need the heavy recline after baby mode IYKWIM

Inbuilt boosters but no. Not a Volvo :)

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Inbuilt boosters but no. Not a Volvo :)

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Cool! Do you mid if ask what kind of car you have? I didn't know anyone else did them, or did you have them done yourself, if that's possible? :)

There are a few out there now. I know Volkswagen, BMW, Dodge and a few other European cars all have the option for integrated booster seats.

Ok thank you for that, it's good to know :) Go Europe again :)

It was actually a selling point for the vehicle we chose. Safety was a big focal point. I think all cars should have them. And I think all boosters should click into the seats and not just rely on a lap belt and sash. I personally think stand alone boosters are extremely dangerous. The videos I've seen are horrific! Often the seats are known to cause damage because they are essentially free from the vehicle.

Yep I agree! ISOFIX will add to the safety of boosters, as soon as manufacturers produce ISOFIX boosters for sale. Half boosters are no longer legal to use here, or are soon to be removed from the standard ( low brain function at the moment, baby brain and HG) All boosters now will have top tethers which will help with stability as well. But integrated boosters are an awesome way to go! If only Australia were as serious about child passenger safety as Europe are.

You know I am only 5'2" and honestly in a lot of cars I am pushing it to have correct belt placement! So really how do most average 7+ year olds manage with out boosters? I even looked for a half booster a bit over a year ago for myself while driving. There was nothing suitable here in Australia, but I probably could have bought one from the US where their weight limits are much higher for boosters as well.
What led me to look was when I had my son's Rf seat which is very tall in the middle position in the back I couldn't see over or around it because I am too short. A friend had half boosters in her car and she suggested I try one before I left, so I did. The extra view/vision I got out all directions was amazing! You don't realise when you're short until something like that :) Also when I put the seat belt on it was placed perfectly, across my body coming up across my shoulder not neck and across my thighs, not stomach. It's a shame the booster was so narrow, it just dug into my butt/hips so would be way too uncomfortable and distracting while driving otherwise I honestly would have bought one.
I have thought of getting some dense foam cut to use, but am still looking into how it may perform in an accident, if it's likely to slide out it could interfere with how the belt works etc Hard to find out though as they don't test dense foam boosters made by random short people :p

Im 5'3 and have the same problem Willow!

Ugh my personal favourite is 'my child is gigantic, I HAD to forward face them/take them out of a booster early'. I call bull poopie. 2 of my 3 boys are HUGE for their ages (ds age 4 is 25kg and ds age 3 is 20kg) but Ds3 is still in a 5 point harness carseat and Ds2 is in an anchored booster with adult belt. Why? Because I did.my.research!!! There are seats out there fit for larger than age average kids if you bother to look into it.

After being in a serious crash that wrote off our car in May and having the ambo's commend me on my smart carseating choices for the kids because otherwise they would have been severely injured (instead of minor bruising), it has become more important to me that EVERYONE takes an interest in bettering our carseat laws and educating parents to make the safest choices for their children. Its the scariest thing I have ever been through, the few seconds between realising we had crashed and trying not to vomit as I turned around to my screaming children expecting to see injuries. I would never wish that on anyone!

I'm with you on the bigger kids thing freya. My DH family tend to have tall chunky toddlers (one nephew was 18kgs at 2.5yo)
She did the research and bought a bit more expensive seat that will fit him until he is about 4. Lol they then had to buy a new car as the little sedan they had wouldn't fit the baby seat! So new baby, then new seat and car to keep him safest.

I also had to buy a new seat recently, as the one I had was too small for DS2 (at 2yo)


I went for the Infa Secure Viper (basically the same as the neon) because it is a newborn to 4 year old seat. And when I compared it to their 0-8 years seat it's the same mould (you just remove the straps) but it doesn't have the moveable head piece. I like the idea of have my little tyke in a seat that he won't grow out of for a long time!

I'd desperately love to import a Radian but it most certainly wont ift in either of our current vehicles.
I have an older SnS Compaq (bought 2007). It is weight rated to 12kg.
DD is currently 10.5 and by the %ile curve she will last until 18 - 20m.
If the SnS eRF in earky '13 I would definitely be buying it.

I have a Radian Cookie doctor, it's a good seat but yes it needs a lot of room even with the angle adjuster!

Hmm so once DD is out of her current car seat (not for ages, she's still got another 3kg to go) what's the best option for RF? We have an i30 CW wagon.

phebee i think the infa neon is the only seat on the australian market that has higher RF limits.

if you were considering importing i have only looked into the radian because of all the good things i have heard.

DS2 was a little lightweight (still is!). I left him rear facing until I felt that his neck muscles were strong enough for holding his head up for prolonged periods of time. And, that he could sit for prolonged periods of time without support. I (personally) think it's a big ask to put a baby in a forward facing restraint just because the hit the weight range - some of the mums in my mums group did, as their babies were "large" but still couldn't properly support themselves in an upright position. The bubs looked uncomfortable in their seats and I don't think it was doing their little bodies any good at all.