car accident... new carseat?

chocolatemilk

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 7:40 pm

my sil got into a fender bender with our car
she was the only person in the car
backed out of our driveway and hit an oncoming car
do we need to buy a new carseat for our dd (25 mnths old)?
if not how much of a car accident does it have to be to warrant buying a new carseat?

Nomad

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 8:27 pm

I think its just if the car seat got damaged, but I would call the company and ask.
dont want to mess around with safety

MiracleMama

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 8:41 pm

Nomad wrote:

I would call the company and ask.

This is exactly what I would do too.

Atali

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 8:45 pm

I don't see what good calling the company would do. They would almost certainly tell her to buy a new one for two reasons:

1. Liability - they don't want to be sued if it turns out the seat isn't safe
2. They would love for her to buy a new car seat from them

MiracleMama

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 8:54 pm

Atali wrote:

Not necessarily. I just called Britax about a problem with one of our seats thinking I was going to have to buy a new seat. They told me all I needed was a new part for $15 including shipping. Not everyone is a crook.

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 8:58 pm

safety agencies (police, fire, etc.) usually recommend buying a new carseat after any accident since the integrity of the safety restraint can be compromised.

punktfarkert

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 9:02 pm

ahuvasmom wrote:

my sil got into a fender bender with our car

There are "fender benders" in which there was a slight bump, but no one in other car really felt much impact. If that was the case, I wouldn't worry. Yet there are also "fender benders" in which it's more of a jolt and air bags inflate, etc. It depends on the severity of the crash.

chocolatemilk

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 11:38 pm

well the airbags did not inflate
but I dont really know how much of a jolt it was as I was not there but the car was not damaged much
I have no intention of calling the company b/c I'm sure for liability they'll say get a new seat (its not like any specific part is broken...)
my question really is how do you know if the carseat needs to be replaced?

Atali

Sat, Oct 17 2009, 11:42 pm

If the car was not damaged much and it wasn't a huge jolt I probably wouldn't replace it.

Marion

Sun, Oct 18 2009, 12:36 am

When I asked the question (someone backed into my PARKED car about a week after I bought a new seat; the damage was all to the hood/front of the car) I was told that because the point of impact was so far removed from the actual seats it was safe to continue using them. Granted, the rear of your car is closer than the hood to where the seats are installed (unless you have a minivan or station wagon), but I would think the same premise would apply.

Love My Babes

Sun, Oct 18 2009, 9:01 am

its not really about calling the company. if u went through insurance for the accident, send them the receipt for the new car seat and they will reimburse u for it. if it really wasnt a big bang I would probably use it, but if it was then thats where the question arises.

BinahYeteirah

Sun, Oct 18 2009, 9:07 am

I would definitely replace it. We actually just did this. Someone hit our minivan while it was parked in front of our house, so we had three seats to replace. The guy's insurance is paying for it, B"H. There could be something wrong with the seat that cannot be seen just by looking.

chocolatemilk

Sun, Oct 18 2009, 9:24 am

NotInNJMommy wrote:

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Policy on Carseats after Crashes

thanks for the link

it's me

Sat, Oct 24 2009, 6:24 pm

I also just had this. DH was hit while driving my car. There was pretty substantial damage to the rear axle of my car. I replaced both carseats and was reimbursed by the other driver's insurance co after dropping off the old ones and showing a receipt for the new ones. Straight forward.