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just wondering which brand is better in regards to car seats. i am asking cause the hipod ones are for sale at target and i am thinking about getting the booster with built in harness and the baby car seat. i already have a safe n sound booster but it doesnt have the harness.. someone told me it is now law, you have to have the ones with the built in harness.. is that true?
anyone?
I don't know, but I suggest you check the RACV/NRMA (RACQ?) ratings of different child seats, and see what they have to say. They have tested a bunch of them for safety and ease of operation.
It is true that you need to have ones with the built in harness. Apparently it's law in Victoria and South Australia - not sure about other states.
We've just bought a Safe-n-Sound Maxi-Rider for that exact purpose. It has the 5 point harness. I've never looked at Hi-Pod - so I don't really know what they're like. I love the Safe-n-Sound chairs. They're very well made, but you certainly pay for it!!
personally would go the safe and sound maxi over the hipod booster with 5 point harness, my SIL bought the bipod so we had them side by side you can tell the quality of the SS over the highpod she returned hipod and we managed to get the maxi on a fantastic special a month back :)
Hollo I'm pretty sure they're still just guidelines rather than law. It goes on the Australian standards and the manufacturers recomendations.
THe Qld regs are harder to navigate from NSWs where I can tell you definitively. There was a push to update the Australian Road Rules (national) but they only got as far as putting in stuff like no child restraints/children in the front seat where there is an airbag etc. The terminology they used is 'approved child restrain', which means Australian Safety Standards.
This is from Q'ld Transport
Child car seats
Once your child outgrows the infant restraint , they can start using a child car seat. These restraints are suitable until the child reaches 18 kg (about four years of age).
Some manufacturers sell child restraints that can be converted to differerent types—for example, lying down or sitting upright. With this type of restraint, the manufacturer may specify different weight ranges (for the child) for the different types of use. A child restraint should never be used outside the range specified by the manufacturer for its type.
Child car seats can only be used on forward-facing seats. They are attached by an anchor bolt, a tether strap and the car's seat belt.
Child harness
A child harness is designed to be used with a lap seat belt or a lap-sash seatbelt to provide extra safety and protection for the child.
If used with a booster seat, a child harness is suitable for a child weighing between 14 kg and 26 kg.
If used without a booster seat, a child harness is suitable for a child weighing between 14 kg and 32 kg.
The manufacturer's instructions should be followed when a child harness is being fitted. When using a harness, you must adjust the seatbelt first so it fits firmly over the child's hips, then tighten the shoulder straps, making sure they are not twisted, and adjust the tether strap.
Don't know if that helped or not.
From personal experience, I've been to way too many crashes where kids were not restrained properly, either by slipping out under the belt or the sash hurting thier necks because they aren't big enough to fit the belt properly.
At least make sure your booster has a neck restraint for the belt so it fits her properly and an anti-submarining clip for the lap part.
We have a maxirider too. It is much more exie than the Hipod, but the hipod seems to be taller???
In NSW they reccomned that children are in a harnessed seat until they're at least 140cm (from my baby brained memory...).
Sorry that was long wasn't it....hope it helped a bit.
thanks guys, yep it is very confusing! LOL hey whats an anit submarining clip for the belt?
It's like a loop with a slide clip that goes between their legs (attached to the seat) that holds the lap part of the belt in the right place and prevents them sliding out underneath the belt.
We got a pamphlet from day care this week and in Victoria it is now Law to have booster with harness for all kids under 4 years old. We have also just bought the hipod from Target...:
Hope this helps...
lukajacksmum- so you arent worried about it not being one of the major brands and then being less quality? we cant really afford a safe n sound one so the hipod is a good price for us, though i dont want it to be inferior in quality. but i guess they all have to pass the same tests dont they?
do you buy the anti-sub clip seperately or do they come with certain models?
I'm not worried at all, they have to meet Australian standards, and as long as they have the 5 point safety harness they are fine. I don't know about the submarine clips????? I just know they need a FIVE point harness which goes between the legs also not just 3...:
Hollo- As long as the carseat passes the latest Australian Safety Standards then you should be reasured that it is safe. In saying that, my mum works at Baby Bunting and has done different training on carseats. She will only let me get Safe'n'Sound because they are the best on the market.
It is also a good idea to get you carseat professionally installed. It might cost you around $40, and you also shouldn't move the seat from car to car, this also ensures greater safety. Did you know that the carseat shouldnt move if it installed corectly in the car? Well worth spending the money on.
The Infa Vario Kid booster rated the safest on the rta site. They retail at $179. You can get them new on ebay for $139 plus $19 postage.
This one only uses the seat belt lap sash though is that right? It doesn't have its own harness? My understanding of the law is that if your in VIC you can only use them if bub is over 4 y.o:
Yeah, I just had a look and it uses only the car, seat belt. Im not sure what the laws are but I would feel much safer having my childs seat anchored to the car and having them strapped in with a 5 point safety buckle.:
I have the Secure Infa Vario Max and use it with a Protecta Harness (type of H harness) as DD is 3 and too little for the adult belt. It also has an anti sub design - but no clip and I was wary as DD loves a tanti in the car. The armrests hold the belt so low she cannot wriggle out. I am really impressed with the seat and spent ages deciding!!!!
Interestingly the Maxi Rider is a convertible and the manufacturers recommend you change from the 5 pt in built harness to a H harness after your child reaches 18 kg anyway. Check out the safety report from the RACV /NRMA before you decide it is quite interesting.
GL
mak, i think it is the same with the hipod ( i looked at their website) and you use the inbuilt 5point system until they are about 18kg then you use the normal car seat belt of the H harness anyway. Why cant they just make one standard rule and one standard safe seat to cut all the confusion!
It is very annoying isn't it. Plus trying to decipher the information from various sources and get through the brand bias - my DD is 3 and 18kg so I wanted to make sure I got the best fit for her size/age and looking forward for as long as possible....not always straightforward!
hollo the maxi rider 2 is around the same price as the hipod from target, its the maxi rider AHR thats more expensive
i ummed and ahhed about it all day and then i just went and put the hipod on layby. then i saw your post AJC.. bummer.. i think i am gonna call RACQ and see what they think with my member discount i think it is only 30 dollars dearer (the Maxi rider mk2 not the AHR one like you said) than the hipod one. oh, what a dilemma! LOL
Did you end up going with the Hipod Hollo?
We need a new carseat for miss J very soon & I'm looking at these. I saw a review & they actually rated quite a bit higher than the maxi rider in testing last year.
Mum and dad have one for ds intheir car and it's fine. We have a maxi rider. They're very different but the hippod is fine now that ds is too big for the normal harness that comes with the maxirider
nah, i ended up getting the maxi rider ahr. i got the automatic retractor model.. BIG MISTAKE! get manual if you can.