Common problems and how to fix them
Buckle crunch
Forward anchorage
My child can escape
Buckle crunch
Buckle crunch is when the seat belt buckle is pressed against the car seat and curving over it, holding the seat in place.
If the buckle is holding the seat in its place rather than the actual seat belt you do not have a secure fit and there is risk of damage to both the seat and the buckle. This is not safe and seats should not be used where buckle crunch is an issue.
Some car seats are more prone to this problem than others and unfortunately if this is an issue it means the seat is not compatible with your car.
If you need help understanding if you have buckle crunch please reach out.
Forward anchorage
Forward anchorage is a problem that occurs when the seat belt buckle has a longer stalk which allows it to move around and can mean the buckle is pulled forward when the car seat is installed.
The problem here is that it does not allow for a solid install of a car seat.
Unfortunately this can be a serious issue and if forward anchorage is causing installation problems it generally means the seat is not compatible with your car.
If you need help understanding if you have forward anchorage then please reach out.
My child can escape
The most common cause for children being able to get their arms out of the harness is that they are not fitted correctly.
If the installation or fit is not right, it does not matter how tight you pull the straps, it just won’t keep them in.
Especially if all they want to do is escape!
So the best thing to do is take a look at the general fitting support section for some basic tips on how to make sure the fit is good.
If you are still facing problems here then please get a professional fit check.
Adjusting the harness height and ensuring the straps are nice and close to the neck are the most common fixes.
Chest clips should be a last resort if the problem cannot be fixed with tweaks to the fit.
Why multistage seats are not what you think they are
What are multistage seats?
They are seats that span across multiple size categories. They generally claim to be the only seat you need lasting from birth to 12 years or 25-36 kg and are often considered to be a much cheaper option than buying multiple seats at different stages.
Sounds great! So what’s the problem?
Well, first of all, they are usually quite misleading in the description of “birth to 12 years”. This is for a number of reasons, Although many car seats claim to be suitable from birth, they often do not give a particularly good fit until baby is a good few weeks old at least, in many cases months. They do not offer the same support offered by an infant carrier and do not hold tiny babies particularly well.
This is not to say all car seats claiming to be from birth give a bad fit. There are some we know can provide a good fit from the get go (depending on the size of the baby).
Although they provide a position for each stage, they generally do not offer a safe option for all of these stages. For example despite being suitable for use upto 36kg, they only actually harness to 18kg (forward or rear facing).
This means that the average child will outgrow the harness (whether forward or rear facing) by age 4 and before they are safe enough and mature enough to use an adult seat belt. Any child over the 50th centile will most definitely not make it to a safe age before maxing out the 18kg harness limit.
Additionally, these seats generally do not test well in every stage. Whilst they may perform well as one of the options, they tend to be let down significantly by other stages.
Finally, high back boosters are not a one size fits all kind of item. It is really important to get a specific high back booster which fits nicely around your child’s shape and in your car
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