what to do re: carseats after minor accident?

[chicagojo]

So my kids and I got rear-ended yesterday (as I stopped for a school bus, no less!) Everyone is ok and there doesn't seem to be any damage to the car, but I know I've heard that carseats should be inspected/replaced(?) after any accident, so I guess what I'm wondering is, what qualifies as an "accident" for this purpose, and is there a way to inspect seats for damage or do they need to be replaced entirely? In case more details about would help, it was more than a tap, for sure - I felt a pretty big jolt and a bunch of stuff inside the car got thrown around - and the car that hit us was a Chevy Avalanche (big & heavy). I'm actually amazed there are no signs of damage to our car (Honda Pilot). But obviously in the greater scheme of collisions, it was very minor. Can anyone give me some guidance here? I'm filing a police report just in case, but am hesitant to call this woman's insurance company over what really seems like just a fender bender, but if the seats need to be replaced then that would be worth it for sure. TIA...

[Joolsplus2]

You'd have to call the seat makers. I'm almost 100% sure Britax would say keep using your seats, but other makers have extremely draconian no-crash policies and will insist on replacement for the slightest of taps. Here's the somewhat official checklist for whether a seat can be used, Britax follows this http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/inju...raintReUse.htm

At any rate, I hope you don't have any neck pain! I was barely tapped once and it hurt for weeks afterwards :P

[bubbaray]

Oh my, I hope you and the kids are OK. Definitely get checked out by a dr and document things.

FWIW, I would TOTALLY call the other driver's ins. co. and get new seats. Absolutely, definitely, no questions asked. If they balk, ask them for a letter of indemnity that the seats are safe to use. They will NOT want to give that and will give you new seats. If you like your current ones, and they aren't going to be outgrown soon, get the same seats and keep the old covers so you have an extra set of covers, but new seats.

Good luck!

[chicagojo]

Thanks for the input to both of you. The NHTSA guidelines are especially helpful - according to those, mine definitely qualifies as a minor accident. The seats involved were a Britax Marathon and a Sunshine Kids Radian (which is almost brand-new). I will call Sunshine Kids when I have a chance to see what they say.

Thanks for the well-wishes too. Luckily I think we really are all fine. I've been in my share of fender-benders, but this was the first one with the kids in the car and I have to admit I was much more rattled that I normally would be after such a minor collision, just thinking about all the what if's...

[bubbaray]

Thanks for the input to both of you. The NHTSA guidelines are especially helpful - according to those, mine definitely qualifies as a minor accident. The seats involved were a Britax Marathon and a Sunshine Kids Radian (which is almost brand-new). I will call Sunshine Kids when I have a chance to see what they say.

Thanks for the well-wishes too. Luckily I think we really are all fine. I've been in my share of fender-benders, but this was the first one with the kids in the car and I have to admit I was much more rattled that I normally would be after such a minor collision, just thinking about all the what if's...

Honestly, there is no downside for you if you get the other driver's insurance to pay for new seats, KWIM? THen you won't have to worry about it. I wouldn't take the risk.

It can take a couple of weeks for "whiplash" to show up. Keep track of any headaches, nausea, etc.