Should I buy a used car seat?

Question

I recently bought 2 new britax regent car seats after the one that my son was in had a design flaw that caused him injury. I had to buy two of the seats because my daughter had the exact same one as my son. Now I am in the market for a new britax for my 10 month old daughter. She is rear facing, but in a car seat that I am not happy with. I want to get her a britax marathon. The cheapest I have found was for $219 new. There is a listing on craigslist for a marathon for $150. He said that it was manufactured in 2004 and was used for 2 years. It's been in a temp controlled storage since then. It's a good deal, but my "mom instinct" says this may not be a good idea. What do you think?

Answer 1

NO>>>>>>>>

Never buy a used car seat.

You will never know if the car seat has been in an accident or misused, it may not fully protect your baby.

Answer 2

No, buy a new 1! make payments on it if u have to!

Answer 3

wow the first one i brought was 49.bucks

Answer 4

I called the salvation army for one.......the lady called me back in two days........said come and get it.........bring a 10.00 bill along with you.............it looks like new.......we wipe it down just to be safe and away we went..........everybody's safe and sound......and a little happier and richer.  good luck........all thrift shops.

Answer 5

No. Get a new one. Plus, you don't know where the person had it stored or the germs lurking around it. Pay more money for a piece of mind.

Answer 6

Listen to that instinct. For one - its not a good deal. At $150, it only has 2 years left (Britax seats, like most others expire 6 years after date of manufacture regardless of how much/little they've been used and how stored) so that's $75 a year. For $219, you'll get at least 5 years, possible the full 6 years, so that's $35-$43. Its actually cheaper to get the new one! Its also safer.

Its actually unsafe to get a used car seat unless it is coming from a trusted friend or relative and you are 100% positive:

1)it has never been in any wreck

2)it has all the original pieces, including manual

3)it has never been dropped, which means never been checked as luggage at the airport, either, since this frequently happens when checked or gate checked .

4)it is less than 6 years old

5)the straps have never been completely submerged or washed with anything other than mild soap(it messes up the flame retardent treatment)



If you wouldn't trust the seller with your child's life, don't buy a car seat from them.

On a side note - I would be incredibly curious as to what defect you're referring to, haven't heard anything about such a thing, and such things are very newsworthy on the car-seat.org forums. And are you sure its a Regent? b/c a 10 month old shouldn't be in a Regent at all, as she should still be rear facing. Just a littl confused. Never heard of a Regent, or its predecessors, the Husky and SuperElite ever causing an injury through proper use. :) Good luck shopping.

Answer 7

I own the Marathon seat and LOVE it.  Wonderful choice! It has lasted and is so easy to use.

Your mommy instinct is correct, DO NOT buy a used seat because you cannot be sure if it has ever been in an accident before.  Once a car seat has been involved in an accident, it is potentially compromised. And the compromise can't always be seen with the naked eye - the car seat might look just fine on the outside, but the structural integrity of it has been weakened due to the accident. This puts the child at extreme risk should another accident occur.  My local police department frowns on car seat re-sales for this very reason.  Just spend the money, don't be penny wise and pound foolish when it involves your little one.

PS Car seats are a one time use item and now come with expiration dates on them (in US it is 6 years) because the plastics eventually break down making them brittle.  Also if you buy used, you will not be able to register it.  If you don't register it, you will not be alerted to any recalls if they should exist.

So... not only would you possibly be buying a compromised seat, you would be spending $150 on a seat you now can only use for 2 years.

Answer 8

never buy or use a used car seat unless you know and trust the previous owners...

It could have been in an accident that caused some damage that is not visible.  This is very dangerous in the event of an accident...  the plastic could be weakened, and if you were in an accident, it could break causing extensive injuries.

When my daughter was born, I used my cousin's car seat... but we're really close and I trust them with my life, so I trusted them with my daughters life.  Besides, I see them almost everyday (I babysit their child) so i would've known if they were in an accident, the seat was registered to them, so they would've told me if it was recalled or something, and since their son was only 10 months older than my daughter, I knew it wouldn't 'expire' anytime soon.

That 69 bucks is not worth your daughter's life.  please don't do it.... follow your mom instinct.

Answer 9

sure thats a good deal. Just disinfect it with Clorox.

Answer 10

NO   NEVER!!!!!!   How do you place a value on a childs life.