Safety and ease of use are paramount when it comes to child car seats. Consumer Choice has some Choice Buys that take the lead in offering the best protection for your child.

Children must be restrained in a car seat whenever travelling from the moment you bring your little bundle of joy home from the hospital until they are 150cm tall or weigh more than 36kg and are ready to use adult seat belts. Safety is clearly paramount when it comes to child car seats but ease of use is also vital to ensure that these devices are fitted correctly each and every time your baby or child travels in the car. The importance of these twin priorities is reflected in our testing – so as well as assessing the car seat’s ability to keep a child safe in the event of a frontal or side impact and rating the seat design as part of the overall safety score, we give equal weight to how easy the car seat is to install and use correctly. The safety performance test results reflect the safety of the seat when it is fitted correctly into the car. Parents may spend considerable time, effort and money buying the safest car seat they can find but if they fail to fit it correctly into their car or to secure their child safely in it, the child may be afforded little or no protection in the event of an accident.

Weight groups

As of 1st August 2014, the number of penalty points incurred by a driver who allows a child to travel without being restrained by an appropriate child restraint increased from two to three, provided the fixed charge is paid within the stipulated period (€60 if paid within 28 days and €90 if paid within 56 days). If the charge is not paid and the driver is subsequently convicted in court, five penalty points will be incurred. However, beyond the legal requirements, parents want the peace of mind of knowing that, should the worst happen, their child will be afforded as much protection as possible by their car seat. The question then becomes what constitutes the appropriate restraint for your particular child. According to the Road Safety Authority (RSA), an appropriate child restraint conforms to the United Nation standard, ECE Regulation 44/03 or 44/04, as denoted by the E mark, and is both suitable for the child’s weight and height and correctly fitted according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Child car seats may be divided into the following weight groups and, although we have indicated an approximate age that this corresponds to, you should consider the weight of the child rather than age when selecting your car seat.

Weight group Type of restraint Weight range Approximate age range
Group 0 Rearward-facing baby seat Up to 10 kg Birth to 6-9 months
Group 0+ Rearward-facing baby seat Up to 13 kg Birth to 12-15 months
Group I Forward-facing child seat 9-18 kg 9 months to four years
Group II Booster seat 15-25 kg 4 to 6 years
Group III Booster cushion 22-36 kg 6 to 12 years

The i-Size standard

In July 2013, a new European-wide standard was introduced for child car seats. The i-Size standard affects car seats for children under 15 months of age and is aimed at providing additional protection for children in the car. One major benefit of i-Size seats is that they keep the child rearward-facing for longer – up to 15 months instead of up to 9 or 12 months, which the previous EU regulation advised. This increases support to the child’s head, neck and vital organs and offers better protection in the event of both a frontal and side impact. With a five-point harness, an i-Size seat ensures that the child remains in the seat even in a roll-over accident.

The i-Size standard seeks to make it easier for parents to choose the right car seat by classifying seats by the child’s length and height rather than weight. Seats made to the i-Size standard can be used in most cars that have Isofix fittings, which have been common in vehicles since 2007 and which make the seat easy to install correctly with less chance of incorrect fitting. I-Size car seats are compatible with all “i-Size-ready” vehicles. The new regulation is not replacing the existing ECE R44/04 standard but runs alongside it – though it will supersede the older standard at some point in the future, probably around 2018. One of the first i-Size seats available in the shops was tested in our current batch and features as a Choice Buy.

Choosing a car seat

New parents have a lot to take on board and transporting their newborn home from the hospital in a brand new car seat may be one of the first challenges with unfamiliar baby equipment that they encounter. Ideally, the car seat should be bought some time ahead of the new arrival and already safely installed in the car when homecoming day comes round. It is also best to have practised how to fasten a child into the seat before you have to do it for the first time with a real-life, small, wriggling bundle in the hospital car park.

When going to a shop to buy a car seat, it is highly recommended that you travel in the car in which you will be using the seat. Not all child car seats will fit in all cars – for example, the car’s safety belts may not be long enough to secure the restraint. You can then make sure that the seat will fit in your car and check the system in the car will match the child restraint system – for example, Isofix. You may also need to consider any other cars – such as those of grandparents or childminders – that the child may be travelling regularly in. Other points to remember when buying and installing the car seat include the following:

  1. Make sure you choose a car seat from the correct group according to the weight of your child and don’t be tempted to move your baby or child up to the next group too soon as this could result in more serious injuries in the event of a crash. The weight groups overlap and it is best to let the child reach the maximum weight for their current seat before moving them on to a seat from the next weight group.
  2. It is not recommended that you buy a second-hand car seat as there may be wear and tear that will affect its safety or it may have been in a crash previously. It may also be missing its original instruction booklet on how to fit it safely.
  3. Car seats may be secured either using the adult seat belts already in the car or via a separate base that is left permanently installed in the car. Generally, a base makes it faster and simpler to install the car seat each time and reduces the chances of incorrectly fitting it into your car. Bases that are secured in the car using Isofix mounting points and/or the adult seat belts are available.
  4. Before buying a car seat, try it out in your car to make sure it fits correctly. Most retailers should be able to help you with this and ideally staff will be on hand to show you how to correctly install the seat in your car. You should also read the instruction booklet yourself and keep it safe as you will need to consult it to make adjustments as your child grows. You may also be able to find online videos uploaded by car seat manufacturers to guide you on correct installation.
  5. A car seat that is correctly installed should not move or slide around. Seatbelts should not be twisted as they may not work properly in the event of a collision. Only the seatbelt webbing should be in contact with the frame of the child car seat – the buckle should not touch the frame as pressure on the buckle – for example, in crash conditions – could cause the buckle to fail, leaving your child unsecured. It is best to fit child car seats in the back of the car and remember that a rear-facing child car seat must never be used in the front passenger seat if there is an active airbag.
  6. Seatbelts and harnesses should all be fastened securely and correctly adjusted so that they fit snugly.

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Child Car Seats tested