Car Seat Expiration
Megan Davidson, doula and baby wearer and cloth diapering instructor, came over last week. We got to talking my old used car seat we are using for Willow. She asked me if I knew that car seats expired. EXPIRED??!! I had absolutely no idea. Megan said she was going to write an article about that for her blog. I asked if she would let me repost it here for you all. Happily, she agreed. And here it is:
Many parents are not aware
that all car seats come with an expiration date printed into the
plastic of the seat itself (check the back of your seat). Be very aware
of this when borrowing seats from other parents or buying used car
seats for your child. Also confirm the history of the car seat – even a
seat that appears to be perfect should never be used again after being
in an accident. They are a single-use product when it comes to
accidents, even ones in which no one was hurt.
expiration date for car seats is typically 6-7 years after the seat was
produced. Manufacturers agree that the plastic in car seats can begin to
degrade, although they acknowledge that this weakening does not
magically begin to occur when you hit the expiration date, but rather,
that some where around 10 years after production they begin to see
evidence of compromise in the materials.
builds in a pretty hefty margin between expiration and deterioration,
and I hear many parents argue that this is a ploy to sell more seats
and make parents consume more. The expiration date, however, is not
simply a reflection of quality control for the safety of the plastic,
but also a concern about new information about how to manufacture car
seats.
seat I bought when my son was born in 2002, for example, was then
discontinued when they found that 3-point harness seats were less safe
than 5-point harnesses, despite looking safer with the additional bar
in front of the child. I had to replace that seat when this new
information became available. This seat would now only be just over 6
years old and reaching the expiration date, finally taking a less-safe
seat out of circulation. Ten years earlier they had also changed the
buckling mechanism on car seats and shifts in technology and knowledge
continue to improve the quality and safety of car seats.
check your car seats and only use used car seats you know the full
history behind. Many websites, including Mothering.com’s discussion
boards, feature safety information about car seats and reviews of
different models available. Review them when buying a new seat,
installing your seat, or evaluating whether a used seat is a reasonable
option for you.
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