CURRENT LEGISLATION

It is mandatory to use the appropriate car seat for the weight and height of your child.

Once a child is too large to require a car seat with an integral 5-point harness, they should use a high back booster for as long as possible as this provides additional side impact protection.

Current UK standards state that children should continue to use a booster seat until they are 135cm/4ft 5" tall. In Ireland and France, they are recommended for children up to 150cm/4ft 9" tall.

Booster seats should not be used for children weighing under 15kg and backless boosters should never be used for children weighing under 22kg.

SHOULD I USE A BACKLESS BOOSTER SEAT?

Research conducted in 2016 by Good Egg Safety (a UK organisation providing in-car safety advice for families), revealed that 34% of children aged eight to 11, were travelling using just an adult seat belt, when a booster seat was legally required, putting them at risk of serious internal injuries in the event of a collision.

Children who have not yet reached 135cm in height may not sit/fit comfortably in high backed boosters, or the seat may not fit into all vehicles when fully extended to accommodate older children. This is why we offer backless booster seats and seats that convert to backless boosters.

It is our position that children should use a high back booster for as long as possible, but in the case where a high back booster is not appropriate or available (for example when travelling by taxis who are exempt from carrying child car seats), using a backless booster cushion is safer than using no car seat at all.

Booster cushions can offer valuable safety protection by preventing the lap strap from sitting across the child's abdomen and offer protection against internal injuries in the event of a collision.

CONSUMER GROUP REPORTS

Some consumer groups do not recommend backless booster cushions at all because they do not offer side impact protection to the head and neck, regardless of the fact that they have passed testing standards in accordance with current legislation and offer better protection that not using a seat at all.

As a result, these groups will oppose ANY seats that convert to a backless booster, regardless of the fact that they may have performed excellently when tested in other modes. Although compliant with EN testing standards, it is not possible for backless booster seats to pass the more onerous tests performed by consumer groups in relation to side impact testing. This is true of all brands of backless booster.

In this respect, it is our view that some consumer group report summaries can be misleading regarding the overall safety of convertible seats when used with a harness or in high back booster mode.

We believe that you should be able to exercise your discretion on the appropriate use of backless booster cushions in order to ensure the safest journey for your child.

SAFETY IS #1

At KidsEmbrace safety is our number one priority and we adhere to a process which involves the following steps to ensure all products are developed to provide maximum protection to a child in the event of a collision.

  1. Each product undergoes vigorous, internal design evaluations and relevant risk assessment procedures for quality assurance.
  2. Our car seats are manufactured from robust materials and fitted with High Impact Protection technology to protect your child, should an accident occur.
  3. All our KidsEmbrace car seats are tested to the European Regulations Safety Standard ECE R44-04.

KidsEmbrace manufactures combination harness to booster car seats for the Global market. KidsEmbrace has developed and manufactures booster car seats for the European market and other countries that require EU testing compliance. These car seats are tested to European Regulations Safety Standard ECE R44-04 and meet/exceed the standard.

 

FITTING YOUR CAR SEAT

A correctly installed car seat is a safe car seat.

A seat that has been correctly fitted using a three-point car seat belt offers the same level of safety as one installed using ISOFIX. The use of the ISOFIX fitting systems is intended to reduce the likelihood of a car seat being installed incorrectly however, not all ISOFIX seats will fit every car with ISOFIX points.

To ensure the correct installation of your car seat, always ensure you read and retain the product manual.

Our Kids Embrace fitting video for our Friendship series seats are available here:
Using as a Group 1 seat
Using as a Group 2/3 seat

Several retailers offer car seat fitting or checking service and advice – check your retailer's website for details.

Good Egg Car Safety also offer guidance and advice here