Why do carseats expire?
This seems ridiculous. If you know they weren't recalled and you know they haven't been in a crash, why should you throw out a carseat??
Update:I bet they are just trying to make money. Those carseat companies robbing parents blind.
Comments
From: http://www.carseat.org/
How old is too old for a safety seat?
There is some controversy about the "expiration" date for safety seats. All experts agree that a seat should be discarded and destroyed if it is more than 10 years old, even if it looks fine. Most manufacturers suggest replacing a seat 5 to 8 years after the date of manufacture, because current safety seats may have better safety features than older seats, such as a tether or air bag warnings. The date of manufacture may be found on a sticker on the seat (unless it has peeled off) and may be stamped into the plastic shell. However, don’t confuse patent dates, which can also be molded into the plastic, with the date the individual safety seat was manufactured.
More information:
Expiration date
In the last few years, CR manufacturers have been putting "expiration dates" on their products. This was begun in response to infant deaths from air bags. The companies realized that they had millions of products in use that said nothing about the danger to a rear-facing child. The concern became one that "best practice" and regulations change over time, so that a child restraint becomes "obsolete" and less effective than a new product, much the same way that medicines may change or become less effective after some time has passed. A current example would be with tethers--older CRs do not have them, and this is potentially a situation where a newer product will be more effective than an older one.
Taken at face value, the expiration interval (ranging from 5 to 8 years, depending on the manufacturer) is from the date of manufacture, which is what governs the labeling, certification, and other rules that apply. Whether to continue to use an "expired" CR is a judgment call, depending on the alternatives. It will work as well as before, but it is important to know what regulations and warnings may have changed and the risks involved. It is also important to take the expiration date into account when purchasing a CR that may have been manufactured several months or even a year or more before.
Usually, the issue with used baby equipment is either whether there could have been a recall or whether there is any deterioration/wear that could compromise safety. There can also be issues associated with how the seats are tethered. Today's cars have a different set-up than older cars did. Sometimes, too, the most recently designed baby equipment may include a design that eliminated a potential problem that may have existed in items designed in the past. On the other hand, sometimes some new design is actually found to present problems earlier ones (with fewer features) may not have. (Recently, a child carrier/seat with a handle was found to essentially dump the baby out because of the way the handle is attached.) I'm not a safety expert, so what I say is only one non-expert's opinion; but if I needed a car seat for my own infant and had access to one that was only five years old, as long as I knew there had been no recalls and no damage to it I'd use it. I would think a seat under five years old wouldn't be a problem.
Because anything after 3 years is considered unsafe, because in those 3 years, they have made improvements, after analyzing carseats that have been in accidents, and the injuries the child might have sustained. Any carseat without a 5 point harness should be considered unsafe, and not used. It's actually illegal for thrift and second hand stores to sell any car seat older than 3 years, which is why most won't buy them from you. It's your childs safety that's at risk, why take the chance?
Plastic becomes week and brittle with age as well as the uv rays of the sun and the temperature changes then if in an accident the straps can pull right through the plastic. like the video in this link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvCRz7BRAM0
Would you really want to take a chance with the life of your child?
What is more important you child or the $50. to $300. for a new car seat?
You can get a good seat (infant or toddler for under $100.)
I have 4 children and they all had new seats. 2 are still in car seats
plus saftey standards change like when my first 2 were born car seats were 3 point harness the Y shield or over head shield now all found to not be safe so now that have all have 5 point harness
Have you ever had the plastic patio chairs? After a few years the chairs brake.
Several reasons. One is that the standards change from time to time. A ten year old carseat was not designed to meet current requirements.
Another is that plastics lose strength and become more brittle with the passage of time and especially exposure to heat and sunlight.
i didnt know carseat has expiration dates
Because technology changes, new research, etc. And the car seat manufacturers may have some inside knowledge of the plastic weakening after being strapped in a car for so long that the seat is no longer safe.
Plastic (which most if not all car seats are made of these days) does in fact degrade over time. Especially if you think about it, it spends a lot of time in the car exposed to sun light which makes the process of degradation happen much faster. The expiration is usually about 5 years past the expiration date so you have plenty of time to use it if you think about it. It also gives them time to improve on older styles and improve safety features.
Besides, isn't your child worth it? I mean I would pay for something to make sure my child is safe!
Safety standards change over time. Science is constantly finding ways to make car seats safer.
Also the plastic can warp and crack over time. Sometimes you won't find this out until you've been in an accident, and obviously by then it would be too late. The fabric used to make the straps and harnesses can also weaken, as well as the fastners/buckles.
I read about that, because I thought it was crazy too, but apparently the plastic, and seat belts become weak after the seat has been used for a while... Obviously you cant find a new car seat that's expired, so obviously if you find one that is expired that hasn't been in a wreck it's already been through one kid, the seat belts have been strapped over and over and the seats been moved in and out of the car over and over, so it's not as good as it was when it first came out.
**Did you also know that if you live in an area that gets extremely hot that your car seat expires sooner?**