Overhaulin' - do i HAVE to buy a car seat JUST to use for when leaving the hospital?

do i HAVE to buy a car seat JUST to use for when leaving the hospital?

i am planning to travel with my baby to where mum lives (another country) for a few months after i give birth as its my first baby and i would like my mum to be there all the time, when i will be back, baby will probably be 4 months... so i wanna buy a car seat when i come back, what do i do? Thanks

Public Comments

Its the law in most states
How are you going to be traveling with your baby from the hospital to your home? You need a carseat if you'll be in a car. If you need to fly to go to where your mum lives, you really should use the carseat on the plane.
Get an FAA approved car seat and take it with you. How are you going to get around with the baby in the other country? Otherwise I suppose you could use a rental seat to get from the hospital to your house and then from your house to the airport...
It is the law and you yes have to have a car-seat when you leave the hospital.
Can rent one some places. Hospitals actually check and confirm before they release you. You cannot even call a cab to take you home without one. 4 months is not too much bigger - get one for newborn-25 lbs and you can use it after too.
So will you not be using a carseat where your mum lives or were you planning on getting one there? My suggestion would be to either buy the infant car seat and use it when you leave the hospital and pack it with you for your mums, or see if you have a friend whose infant carseat you could borrow for use on the way home from the hospital and then buy a convertible car seat at your mums or when you get home (if you will not be traveling with her by car at ur mums stay)
Yes, they will not let you take the baby without a car seat.
you don't have to get a newborn car seat. Get one that will evolve with your baby. They have ones that even start out for newborns, then turn into a booster seat for toddler aged kids.
the hospital will not let you leave if you don't have a car seat even if you are walking home from the hospital. just buy a convertible car seat, they work for both rear facing and forward facing, so you don't have to worry about baby out growing it. most are rated from 5lbs to 40-50lbs.
If you plan on taking the baby in the car at all, you will need a car seat. And, you will probably need one on the plane. You should probably plan on getting on... probably the most important thing of all, whether you use it once, twice, or 100 times.
Go to good baby shop and ask them for the best advise so that you know it is a legal and a safe seat for the safety of your child
Its the law most hospitals will not let you leave without a carseat.
No, you do not have to buy one, you can rent one. Short term rentals (for example for the 4 months until you get back) are possible and indeed are a good idea because it means you can buy the larger seat for when you get back in stead of buying the small seat for baby then upgrading to a larger seat later. Lots of seats can be used for 0 to 12 months but the best ones are 0-6 and then 6 onwards. Good luck with it, I can't give you any advice on who rents them in the UK but you could try asking the hospital or your nearest midwife. :-)
Yes - how else were you planning to travel with baby in a car :) You also need to use a car seat on the plane, and you will need a car seat at your destination unless you're planning to never go outside your mum's house. Many babies outgrow infant carriers at 4-7 months old, so if you don't anticipate using i t much in those months, deifnitely skip the infant carrier and go with a convertible car seat, there's 3 that fit newborns well: Cosco Scenera $45 Walmart/Kmart/Target rear facing to 35lbs, easy to use, lightweight, FAA approved for use on the plane. Forward facing to 40lbs. Makes a GREAT rear facing seat, important since kids should stay rear facing as long as possible, preferably 2 years. As a forward facing seat its outgrown at 2-3 years old b/c of only 15" tall harness slots, so your child will need another harnessed seat at that time, but you definitely get your $45 worth out of this inexpensive seat. Evenflo Triumph Advance fits newborns wonderfully, rear facing to 35lbs, forward to 50lbs with 17" top slots. No-rethread harness means you never have to take the seat apart to adjust the height, and has infinite adjust height so the straps are always at the perfect height. Tighten/loosen harness with knobs rather than yanking a strap. can be reclined even in forward facing mode. $120-150. Great seat that will last till child is 4-5 years old. Can be used on the plane. First Years/Compass TruFit. $180 - fits newborn, no rethread harness, built-in lockoffs so you always get a good isntallation without a locking clip. The headrest comes off for rear facing under 22lbs to fit better in vehicles. Goes to 65lbs forward facing with 17.5" top slots, lasting most kids to at least 5 years old. Great seat! Another thing to consider: will you be doing any traveling by car once you get to your destination? Then you will need the car seat anyway, or you will have to purchase one when you get there. Do not rely on a car seat from a rental company! Its dangerous. Car seats expire 6 years after the date of manufacture, and are not safe if not taken care of properly. It must never have been in a wreck, never dropped, include all the original pieces and manual, and be installed correctly, something the rental staff will not help you with. On that note, remember too, that it is better NOT to check car seats as luggage. Think of how your luggage gets banged around - well, if your car seat gets banged around, it is no longer safe to use. A car seat is only made to withstand being dropped/in an accident once! And if it gets dropped and you don't know about it, you unwittingly put your child in danger. Better all around to take the seat on the plane. And the airline is very unlikely to replace the seat if they do damage it. Just check to make sure that your car seat is FAA approved for aircraft use, should say so somewhere on a label on the seat. Also - if you are planning on having your baby as a lap baby, you should know the truth of what can really happen, check the links below. Flight attendants refer to lap babies as MISSILES!!!! That's right, b/c missiles is what they become when there is heavy turbulence or other problems or rough flights. They give the count as "127 pax (passengers) and 3 missiles". Is a missile what you want your baby to be? WHY USE CAR SEATS ON PLANES: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080110/ap_on_re_ca/canada_plane http://flyingwithchildren.blogspot.com/ WHY REAR FACING: http://www.carseat.org/Resources/633.pdf In the foreground is a forward facing seat, in the background a rear facing seat. You can see how much trauma the forward facing dummy has to endure. The rear facing child simply rides it out. http://www.oeamtc.at/netautor/html_seiten/kisitest_2002/videos/test2002/frontcrash/maxicosipriori.mpg Here's another video. You can see how there is NO trauma to the baby, it simply sits there waiting for it to end. http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v163/jen_nah/carseats/?action=view¤t=video06A_MGA_213_RearFace-Convertib.flv