Infant car seats on a budget - Pregnancy and Par...

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Infant car seats on a budget

3DFred profile image
17 Replies

Hi everyone,

I’m looking at car seats for when baby arrives and I’m having trouble seeing what is worth the money.

We’re on a tight budget but I don’t want to compromise on safety. My OH seems to think they’re all the same so just get any old one. I’m really reluctant to do this because I’m pretty sure there must be some difference in safety reflected in the prices. Maybe I’m just falling for the hype 😰. Is a £50 car seat as good as a £150 seat in terms of safety?

Does anyone have any recommendations/advice?

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3DFred profile image
3DFred
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17 Replies
roxannacar profile image
roxannacar

Honestly I don't know the answer to this... however might be worth researching the particular car seat you want. Sometimes the price is more reflection of the brand or some fancy extra like some seats will rotate sideways to help get baby out. Which? Do car seat tests but you have to pay for subscription.

What I have read tho is that you shouldn't buy it second hand as if someone had an accident in it the product might not be robust

Munyze profile image
Munyze

Hi! For what I can say we bought a 39,99£ car seat on Amazonbefore baby was born, my baby is 6 months now and the seat is still good...

You need to read the reviews and check for the star system of car seats, ours is 4 and didn't had many reviews but since we don't use it to much it was ok. So far very happy with it

romaluna2015 profile image
romaluna2015

We have the maxi cosi cabriofix car seat for our twins. We got them when they were on offer . Normally £135 we paid £90 each for them x

Andybevan350 profile image
Andybevan350 in reply toromaluna2015

I had this too, was a great seat and I did my research, it’s safe, didn’t need a new one till she was 1 and stayed with maxi cosi brand and the next seat was even cheaper (on sale again)

Joey89 profile image
Joey89

I’m not to sure about the regulations are where you live but I know that in Canada it doesn’t matter what brand name or the price of the seats that they all have to pass the exact same safety standards I got safety first travel system it came with the car seat and stroller I absolutely love it I was actually rear ended in oct by a semi truck with my 4 month old in the back seat and she was 100% ok her car seat did it’s job and I got it from Walmart for under $300 Canadian hope this helps give you peace of mind

KellyTrip profile image
KellyTrip

We have a maxi cosy car seat which we used for my son until he moved into a bigger seat. He is now in a joie extended rear facing seat which can be used from birth until around the age of 7 and it cost 150. We also had the joie tilt in our other car which our ten week old now uses as it's much more comfy for her than the travel system seat. The tilt is around 70 pounds and again it' extended rear facing and lasts until they are around 4. Definitely worth the money!

claire16c profile image
claire16c

We had a maxi Cosi cabriofix.

Seats are not all the same some have passed higher standards than others. So many people spend more on a buggy system than a car seat but a good car seat is important.

If you buy a maxi cosi pebble or cabriofix and then buy the 2way base with it it will cost you a bit but then you can buy a 2way pearl seat when they are 1, which lasts til they are 3-4 and you already have the base which fits it.

Some prams will do free car seat deals. Most brands will be ok but I’d do some research.

3DFred profile image
3DFred

Thank you all for your support! I’m in Scotland and I’m trying to think how much LO will be in the car (I drive but partner uses the car 7days a week to commute). LO and I will be using a sling for most of our travels and we live really really near everything we need. I don’t even want a travel system because we live in a 2nd floor flat, and can’t see myself coping with bags, baby and pram. I was hoping to survive with a sling till she gets too heavy, and then the lightest buggy I can find lol.

I feel like I don’t want to mess this decision up, but on the other hand, I don’t want to waste money on something that isn’t going to get used a lot. Arghhhhh

Amanda86 profile image
Amanda86

Hello,

I have no idea about car seats but my thinking is the ones you can buy which last from birth until older would be great, so I had a quick look and found this....

mothercare.com/combination-...

A little expensive, but I think it's great that it can last right through until 12 years 🙂 Xxx

3DFred profile image
3DFred in reply toAmanda86

Ah thank you so much, this one looks really good and like you said will last. I haven’t considered this type of chair so I’ll see what my partner says. Thanks for the idea.

Amanda86 profile image
Amanda86 in reply to3DFred

Your welcome 🙂 Xxx

mrsamy profile image
mrsamy

Keep on the lookout for deals from different places...smyths, toys r us. Boots, Amazon,and ebay shops.

Plus the Joie every stage or graco mile stone are good value like someone else said. Cos they last till LO is 12. These come on offer as well (Halfords, boots, toys r us, amazon).

Good luck with your search

ChrisWest1983 profile image
ChrisWest1983

Our stupid car Ford does not have isofix - so we knew we can't have the nice base we wanted- so we went for the cheap - basic Mothercare brand one . Does it's work brilliantly - we bought it on sale and I think it was £40

ChrisWest1983 profile image
ChrisWest1983 in reply toChrisWest1983

PS: worth to think - what's your Pram, will need adaptors or you'll never use it.. good luck!

3DFred profile image
3DFred in reply toChrisWest1983

I plan on getting the my child floe ‘pramette’ as it has good reviews and won’t take up too much space with it being an all in one. But a relative said they’d get me a pram........no idea if they’ll even keep to their promise, let alone which one it’ll be 😣

mrsamy profile image
mrsamy

Hi Have just seen this on toys r us. comes down to £39.97 with the 20% off they've got going at the moment. Hopefully there'll be stock near you if you decide to go for it

toysrus.co.uk/toys/pdp/prod...

DanOstin profile image
DanOstin

That's not a problem, there are many really good models of seats for an affordable price. Especially we brought an Evenflo Maestro Booster Car Seat Thunder for our daughter from cutelittledarling.com/best-.... It is suitable for children weighing from for about 22-110 lbs. We paid 90$ for it and the most pleasant thing is that this seat is fitting an extended use converts. It has 5-point harness to vehicle seat belt use as the child grows. Indeed, it is the perfect price for a thing that you can use for a long time and have no necessity to buy another one after some years.

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