Seatbelt angst!! Another coop???

[momaswell]

I recently read in another post somewhere (can't find it) that someone's little one is unlatching and letting himself out of his seatbelt. This has been going on here for sometime with my little guy as well, and isn't getting any better. I have had to pull over numerous times!! It is compounded by the fact that I also have another little one in the car who he thinks would like to be unbuckled too!!

Anyhow, I have been looking for an answer!

Check this out: http://www.theangelguard.com/

They aren't cheap...$19.95 US plus $9.95 US for shipping. That gives you a pack of 2 clips.

Anyhow, taking the lead of the other coops on here I called the owner. She is willing to do a coop if we can get a total of 72 orders (packs). Seems like a lot to me but it is worth a try.

Each pack has 2 clips. For the coop, it would be $8.00 US per pack, shipping would be free. We would just have to pay exchange and duty on top of that. (Maybe tax too? I would have to check on that.)

Anyone interested?

[newmom_0405]

i would be interested in it, i would be in for like 2 packs if it is approved in canada, will check out the site more and do some research and let you know if i find anything.

[emmy'smum]

I would probably need one in the next year or so, (when can I get rid of the 5 point harness?), BUT do they have something similar I could use now? My daughter is coming very close to unbuckling herself out of her carseat - and she's not even two!! :?

[momaswell]

Not sure, but check the website for a demo. I know that a friend of mine used to use the 5 point with the seat belt as well, because her LO was trying to undo the 5 pt.

[Liisa]

Yes please! $20 plus s/h, taxes, duty, etc. is a bit much for a piece of plastic, but I'm in for the $8+.

It's a tall order, though...maybe cross-post to other forums. Maybe one of the home business moms would be interested in selling them, if that's even legal.

[highlandmom]

I'm in for one. Maybe keep track of who's in, and their name, and total. It is a bit of a tall order, but it can be done.

[MilkyMama]

I've just contacted a Canadian CRS Tech to check legalities of this product. I see nothing on their website saying that it has been approved for use by CMVSS (Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standard) and legal within Canada. I don't even see anything that says its been crash tested for use in the States.

Worst case scenario - If you were ever in an accident and need to make a claim with your insurance company, if this product has not been approved for use in Canada, they could potentially refuse to payout.

There are so many reasons I can see for NOT using this product.

PLEASE before you place an order for these be sure you have all the info necessary to make an educated purchase!

I will get back to you when the tech gets back to me. I have also asked her to give suggestions on alternatives.

MM

[boysRus]

I think it was safety first. It was sold in Canada so probably met standards and was only $5. I don't have a box any more but I bought one for my friend just a few months ago so they should still be available. I'll try to find it to find out the brand.

[Siana]

FWIW, just because a product is made available commercially in Canada doesn't mean in meets safety standards. Most aftermarket products used for car seats void the warranty.

[julia]

I wouldn't buy it either. As for unbuckling his seatbelt, my son only did it for a short while after transition to the booster seat. He knows now that he can only unbuckle his when I unbuckle mine.

[momaswell]

I've just contacted a Canadian CRS Tech to check legalities of this product. I see nothing on their website saying that it has been approved for use by CMVSS (Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standard) and legal within Canada. I don't even see anything that says its been crash tested for use in the States.

Worst case scenario - If you were ever in an accident and need to make a claim with your insurance company, if this product has not been approved for use in Canada, they could potentially refuse to payout.

There are so many reasons I can see for NOT using this product.

PLEASE before you place an order for these be sure you have all the info necessary to make an educated purchase!

I will get back to you when the tech gets back to me. I have also asked her to give suggestions on alternatives.

MM

Thanks for the info. I never thought of that. Please let us know!

[MilkyMama]

This is the reply I received:

There is no legal issue with this item, as there is nothing in the laws, I believe, of the provinces to say one way or another.

Has it been tested to safety standards (and only CMVSS counts when it comes to traffic safety standards not CSA)? I don't think so because TC is not into testing such after-market items.

Is it safe? I checked with a few other techs and we feel that it's not a safety concern per say as it does not intefere with the working of the seatbelt. So that's good.

Is it risk-proof? No, as many of you have mentioned that when in an emergency, it could pose a problem for those needing to get to a child fast enough, in the event that they cannot cut the seatbelt to do so.

Does it have its use? Perhaps. Granted that most kids that in boosters should already be wise enough to leave the seatbelt latch alone but there are also the cases where the child can either be problematic or unable to understand then the AngleGuard might come in handy as a preventive device.

So, if one is to use this device, I would suggest have the user's manual or instruction handy where someone can find it. This is just as important as keeping the user's manual of the carseat/booster handy.

Of course, education, reinforcement and discipline are a-must in teaching children the rights and wrongs, but sometimes we do have realise there are cases that this kind of device might be a 'life-saver' for most of the times and there might be a chance of it posing an issue in an event of a collision.

And about twisting the seatbelt half-revolution... I think twisting the buckle upside down works for a 2 yrs old in a carseat, but not for older and smarter kids who are determined to 'play' with their seatbelt latches or get out of the booster seat.

Another use that I think this could be useful is just to cover the seatbelt buckle of an installed carseat. This helped to prevent another passenger sitting next to the carseat accidentally and unknowingly unlatched the carseat seatbelt. This happened to me once years back. Horror of all horrors, I found out the carseat had be unlatched after my mom or MIL sat next to our dd's carseat during one trip. I didn't know how long it was unlatched - could have been only the night before I found out or could have been couple of trips. So, I used the Safety 1st seatbelt buckle cover, similar to the AngleGuard just to keep the carseat's seatbelt latch covered.

--------------------
TamC
Certified Canadian CRS Technician

While I would still not likely use this device it seems it may have it's merits. I do like the idea of protecting the carseat's belt from accidently being unbuckled but not for the belt on the child.

If you do decide to use a device like this, I would look into the Safety 1st version as it seems it may be fair bit less expensive.

HTH

MM

[Liisa]

Doesn't look like you'll be getting the orders you need afterall. Oh well...will look into the safety first one myself.

[momaswell]

Thanks for all that info!!

I am also interested in the Safety First version. I didn;t know they had one. Where can we find it? Is there a picture of it somewhere on the web?

[MilkyMama]

Thanks for all that info!!

I am also interested in the Safety First version. I didn;t know they had one. Where can we find it? Is there a picture of it somewhere on the web?

I'm searching but I've found this one...

seat bealt safety cover

I will ask the others where they found theirs.

MM