Help me convince my sis to put her son in a 5pt harness!

[MontrealMum]

I second what Kris has to say about "average" growth, and the need for carseat companies to make safe options for taller/bigger kids.

I am assuming, seeing that she is in Michigan, that we are talking about those wonderful tall Dutch genes! Or perhaps German or Scandinavian ? I myself am originally from there and all of the above, and according to the above link about "average growth", my DS has already hit the bottom end of the curve for one-year-olds at 28 inches. However, he's only just over 5 months. I measure him frequently because I figure that we're mere days away from switching his infant seat (which goes to 29") out for a convertible.

I won't do the math to predict where he'll be in the future because quite frankly I don't have the time, but all of the men in my family are at least 6'2'' so I'm thinking he'll definitely be up there. That would be because he's in the 98th percentile for length. I was, myself, in the 98% for length and 25% (as is DS) for weight throughout my childhood and did not experience a growth rate slowdown as the "experts" mention here.

There's a reason they call it average...some are below, some are above, and many are in-between...mix it all together and you get the average. I am personally more concerned with the height issue, but I'm sure there are a number of kids that are affected by the weight limits too. Here's my vote for asking manufacturers to offer the market a little more for those on the higher end of the growth curve.

[KrisM]

I second what Kris has to say about "average" growth, and the need for carseat companies to make safe options for taller/bigger kids.

I am assuming, seeing that she is in Michigan, that we are talking about those wonderful tall Dutch genes! Or perhaps German or Scandinavian ? I

I'm a mix and am fairly average. My friends are both Canadian born and I don't know heritage past that.

My DH's family is short. DH is 5'5" and the tallest. We are continued to be surprised with DS who is still in the 75th percentile. We're hoping it stays that way because being a short man can be tough. Of course, being super tall is hard too - my friend gets so many rude comments (why is he in diapers - uh, he's 20 months! and other silly things).

DD was a peanut at age 1 and I was thinking I'd keep her RFing for years! She was 17.5 lbs at 1. Well, here at 19months, she's up to 27.5 lbs already! That's 10 lbs in 7.5 months! Crazy growth. Now, I'll be happy if we make it to age 2 RFing!

[801kelle]

My nephew is 4 and pretty heavy (50 lbs?). My sister has him in a booster and I was trying to tell her that a 5pt harness is safer. She didn't think there were any seats that would fit him. I told her there were, but she's not convinced that they're better. Here's what she emailed me:
"I think a lot of people like us don't have latch and tethers in our vehicle. We have to use the seatbelt anyway, so if the seatbelt failed, it wouldn't matter if they were in a 5 point harness or not. They would still go flying.
Even if we did have latch, there is a weight limit for latch as well, it can't hold a super heavy kid, and it could fail too."
How would you respond? I know a 5pt is safer, but I don't know how to argue points on the failing seatbelts. She has a minivan so I don't know if she can tether in the back row. Thanks!

Here is some great info on Latches and Tethers:

http://www.car-safety.org/latch.html

Here is another really great article about limits of latch and tethers:

http://www.saferidenews.com/html/LATCH_P49.htm

[801kelle]

"I think a lot of people like us don't have latch and tethers in our vehicle. We have to use the seatbelt anyway, so if the seatbelt failed, it wouldn't matter if they were in a 5 point harness or not. They would still go flying.
Even if we did have latch, there is a weight limit for latch as well, it can't hold a super heavy kid, and it could fail too."
How would you respond? I know a 5pt is safer, but I don't know how to argue points on the failing seatbelts. She has a minivan so I don't know if she can tether in the back row. Thanks![/QUOTE]


Look what I just found on the kylemiller website:

Ultimately, a 5-point harness seat offers the most protection during a collision and in the event of a seatbelt failure/ejection it will cocoon the child and will absorb the blow of hitting the ground, protecting the child's fragile head and neck. Currently the Britax Regent is the largest 5-point harness seat, accommodating a child up to 80 pounds and 53". Our strong recommendation is that you keep your child in a 5-point harness as long as possible.

Here is the link: http://www.kyledavidmiller.org/pages...neral_Tips.htm

[801kelle]

[QUOTE=peasprout]
I think a lot of people like us don't have latch and tethers in our vehicle. We have to use the seatbelt anyway, so if the seatbelt failed, it wouldn't matter if they were in a 5 point harness or not. They would still go flying.
Even if we did have latch, there is a weight limit for latch as well, it can't hold a super heavy kid, and it could fail too."

ON the Britax Regent you CAN USE the Latch to 80lbs and the Tether! We have Regents and now since their safety recall they have made new latch straps so you can use to 80lbs but they recommend you use Top Tether too!

[KrisM]

ON the Britax Regent you CAN USE the Latch to 80lbs and the Tether! We have Regents and now since their safety recall they have made new latch straps so you can use to 80lbs but they recommend you use Top Tether too!

Won't that depend on the vehicle manufacturer though. I don't know if this information has changed greatly, but http://www.saferidenews.com/pdfs/LATCHApp_B_pg105.pdf doesn't show any manufacturers that approve using LATCH at 80lbs.

[bubbaray]

ON the Britax Regent you CAN USE the Latch to 80lbs and the Tether! We have Regents and now since their safety recall they have made new latch straps so you can use to 80lbs but they recommend you use Top Tether too!

Weight limit for use of LATCH (and TTs to some extent) depends *not only* on the child restraint instructions BUT ALSO on the vehicle itself. Honda does not allow use of LATCH over 40lbs, so if you have Honda and a Regent and a child over 40lbs, you need to install via belts, regardless of what Britax says.

[bubbaray]

I think a lot of people like us don't have latch and tethers in our vehicle. We have to use the seatbelt anyway, so if the seatbelt failed, it wouldn't matter if they were in a 5 point harness or not. They would still go flying.
Even if we did have latch, there is a weight limit for latch as well, it can't hold a super heavy kid, and it could fail too."
How would you respond? I know a 5pt is safer, but I don't know how to argue points on the failing seatbelts. She has a minivan so I don't know if she can tether in the back row. Thanks!

Most vehicles can have a TT retrofitted. If the vehicle is one sold in Canada, there is ALWAYS a TT part (though it may be hard to get a US dealer to acknowledge that) and you might be able to order from a Canadian dealer. TTs are mandatory for child restraints here.

It is highly unlikely that a seatbelt would fail. I think there have been some reported failures on Caravans (there's a class action IIRC). But, statistically, even if the belts did fail, the child is far less likely to be ejected from the vehicle if strapped into the child restraint via a harness. Its just crash physics (seat + child = heavier, won't be thrown as far), as well the child restraint/child being larger than child alone and maybe not fitting through a window. The biggest danger in a crash is ejection from the vehicle.