Britax - car seat expiration 6 years?

kirac

My friend gave me her britax seats - 3 of them!  They all expire within the next 12 months though so I keep debating whether to use them.  It's a good friend so the seats weren't in any accidents and are in pretty good condition.  I think I'll use for one year past expiration then replace.  What's your opinion?  I tried to do a lot of research but there just isn't much.

The plastic car seat itself seems REALLY sturdy.  From what I read, it's old belts or the plastic holding the belt together that could go bad first.  Who knows.... 

LittleApple

They expire after six years after the manufacture date.  I wouldn't trust them after that date.  It is just not safe.  They may seem sturdy, but in an accident the plastic could crack and cause injury.

MrsBigTime

We were given a seat that had been expired (I didn't actually want the seat, but somehow it showed up at my house) and I will not use it.

Most things we are used to are probably fine after their expiration date, but with something that would be solely responsible for saving my baby in the event of a crash, I just don't see the point in risking it. So what if the straps wear out first, that's the part that keeps your kid in the seat! 

If you're going to use the seats, use them until their expiration date and then replace, otherwise, IMO, don't use them. 

MrsJetSet

Personally, the safety of my child is more important than saving a little cash. I would use them till they expire then take advantage of the next BRU trade in event and get new ones.

ellewoodsSC

MrsJetSet:

Personally, the safety of my child is more important than saving a little cash. I would use them till they expire then take advantage of the next BRU trade in event and get new ones.

This, BRU gives 25% off during trade in events when you bring an expired car seat.   

SuperCuteBenz

No way.

Do I think that seats turn into pumpkins the day that they expire? No. However, once you go past that point, you are essentially deciding to use your child as a crash test dummy. You could get into an accident 6 months after that and the seat could fail. Then what? The company won't be held accountable, because you are using the seat past their recommendations, and I have heard of insurance companies not covering injuries, etc because of that. Seriously though, imagine how you would feel if your child is riding in an expired seat, and is killed in an accident. I would always wonder if the outcome would have been different had I decided to spend a mere $40-$60 and get her a different seat.

Also, if you live in a state with a proper use clause, then it is illegal to use an expired seat.

My child's safety is worth everything to me. I would give plasma, sell things, etc to make sure my child has a non expired seat. 

MrsNole

If it were me, I'd use them from now until they expire and no later than that.  I'd use the time to save up and buy a brand new seat.  Please don't use past expiration date.

Ash&Vic

I would not use them either, sorry.

I was just educating my husband about expiration dates recently, since my SIL offered to give us the one she had used for my neice. SIL bought hers from a consignment store years ago and has used it for my neice who is now 6.5. Now that she was going to change her to a booster seat she kept insisting that we take her Britax. I was like ...hell to the no...not only has she been using it for 6 years but it was bought used! My SIL can be very bull headed so it was no use telling her that what she thought was good enough for her kids wasn't good enough for ours so we told her to take it to MILs house so she could have a seat in case of emergencies.

The chance of MIL taking my kids around in her car are remote and it seemed to make SIL happy so I was happy too.