Are seat protectors useful?

[raynjen]

Are those seat protectors I see advertised everywhere useful? I ask because I've never actually seen one in use. Do most people just put an old towel or something under the seat? Also, if you recommend one, do you like the kind that has multiple pockets or find they don't get used as advertised? Thanks,
Jen

[tobymc]

I'm not a big one for seat protectors, but I don't care about the appearance of my car all that much either. I mean, I do some, but I'm not all that picky about it. If you do want to protect your vehicle seats, you can certainly try one of these protectors. Just try to find a very thin one. I have also not found that the pocket idea was all that great in practice, but I'm sure some parents have found that they work.

Toby

[anadandy]

We bought one when we got a new car. We mostly got it to keep the seat from wearing or tearing the upholstery (because that seat is in there TIGHT) - not for food spills. It does have a pocket, but the positioning of it makes it pretty useless. It only cost us $5-$6, so it wasn't a waste of money. The sheet does not affect the fit of the seat at all - we had it checked by a safety seat technician.

To be honest though, I can't see that it would protect against serious spills or thrown stuff. It just doesn't cover that much area. Hence why we don't let our 2 year old have messy stuff back there :)

[sarsah]

I have a minivan with leather seats and am using the Prince Lionheart seat protector (like a big rubber mat) becuase the leather is slippery. That particular seat protector seems to work well and my seat has been checked at a Car Seat Check and the checker commented on how well the mat worked.

That being said, you could probably just as well use the Rubbermaid grip stuff and save yourself some money. They don't make it in a color to match my seats & I'm picky about stuff like that, so I spent the extra $ on the seat protector. I also have the Sassy seat protector and it's pretty much worthless because it's too slippery.

Sarah.....Jason's Mommie

[Iansmom04]

Hi
We recently bought the Fisher Price one that also came with a soft toy box to hold toys. I thought it would be a good idea, to keep toys contained in case of an accident.. we went to a car seat check this past weekend and the tech had me remove the seat protector from under the car seat. He felt that it would allow the seat to slip in an impact. I folded it in half and put it beside the seat, so it will still hold the toy thing... but it was a waste of 24.00!!

[yvonne]

I also have the Prince Lionheart protector. I bought it because I have leather seats. I grips the vehicle seat and the childs seat very well because it is rubber. I have had mine since my child was 1 years old (now 4 yrs old) and it has saved my car from a couple of car sickness incidents. Because it is rubber, it caught and held the nesty liquids that would have gone into the crevices of the vehicle seat. It save me alot in car detailing $$.