Car
seats have expiration dates.
Fun fact: Car
seats have expiration dates.
New car seat with all parts and instruction: avoid used car seats due to age (car
seats have an expiration date after 6 years), previous poor use, missing parts, and constantly changing recalls.
Surprisingly, car
seats have an expiration date that is usually located on the seat itself or in the instruction manual.
Not exact matches
If you
've ever looked at the bottom of your car
seat, you may
have come across a sticker that gives it a «do not use after»
expiration date.
Sometimes you
have to calculate the
expiration date yourself, but most of the time you'll find a sticker or stamp somewhere on the
seat itself telling you when it is.
Armed with this new information, the first thing you should do is go check your
seats to make sure they haven't passed the
expiration date.
Remember that most car
seats actually
have an
expiration date, so make sure you get one that is well within the newest safety features and guidelines.
If a family member
has a
seat which was used for their own child and the history is known (a
seat which
has been in a crash could fail in the next collision) and the
expiration date hasn't passed, then by all means share the
seat.
Car
seats are solidly built devices designed to keep your baby safe, and it seems strange that a car
seat would have a listed
expiration date considering it is not made with any materials that mold or age.
The
seats do
have a wide
expiration date margin, so you will be able to use it for a few children.
Just make sure that the
expiration date on your car
seat (for safety) is at least a year away from when your baby will be born and that it hasn't been involved in a car accident.
Please also realize that once you
have selected your car
seats (whichever one you get), they do
have expiration dates, which you can read more about here.
If you are in need of a new car
seat or stroller (and remember that car
seats do
have expiration dates), now is a good time to check out these rare sales on Britax.
To reduce the risk of car accidents involving young children, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends that parents select a car
seat that matches a child's height and weight,
have their child's car
seat inspected, discard the
seat after its
expiration date, and keep all children under age 13 in the backseat.
«So many moms
have questions about car
seat rules,
expiration dates and installation,» says Lumsden.