• Recycling a carseat: How old is too old?
• California DMV: resale of car seats
• What to do with old car seats?
• Carseat in a Fender-bender

Just a reminder to buyers and sellers of used car seats to make sure you are aware of their expiration dates. They vary among manufacturers, but you can usually find the information in the user manual online. The expiration has to do with the integrity of aging plastic parts, not how well you care for or how heavily you use the seat. More info here http://www0.epinions.com/content_4753956996. Be safe! Nina

Recycling a carseat: How old is too old?

Car seats have expiration dates - check the tag. If it's past the expiration date, you'll have to just get rid of it. If you can't find an expiration date, then use 6 years after the manufacture date as the expiration date. The reason is that carseats are made of plastic, and plastic breaks down, becomes more brittle, and cracks over time. You may not be able to see this. For more information about this, see Do Car Seats Expire? at About.com.

California DMV: resale of car seats

The following pages are on the website for the California Dept. of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and contain information about re-selling a car seat.

"Child Passenger Restraint System: Prohibition Against Resale After Accident"
Carseats that have been in an accident may not be re-sold.

Insurance Code
Liability insurance must cover replacement of carseats involved in an accident. Carseats that were involved in an accident may be taken to the California Highway Patrol.

What to do with old car seats?

I have several used carseats that I no longer need. Goodwill does not take them, probably because of potential liability issues. Are there organizations or people who might need them, or must I throw them away at the landfill? Thanks -- Sarah

Carseat in a Fender-bender

We have a nice Britax carseat that was in our car when we had a minor fender- bender. Because we were not at fault in the accident, the insurance company has agreed to replace it... I am wondering what the best thing to do with the old carseat would be, I hate to create landfill and just dump it in the trash but I would feel bad if another child in another car was not properly restrained by it in an accident. looking for a ''third way''

Since then I have received information that suggests that the seats were safe. According to SafetyBestSafe U.S.A., the National Highway Safey Administration recently reversed its recommendation to discontinue use of safety seats involved in a crash. IF the safety seat and the door next to it were not visably damaged, the air bag was not deployed, no one was injured, and the car could be driven, the safety seat need not be replaced.

If you have already purchased new seats, I would recommend you donate them. For more information you can call (800)745-SAFE, (310)222-6860, or (800) 747-SANO (spanish) or look at www.carseat.org. They also do great car seat checkups and are very helpful with general car seat information. mel

As our son is about to graduate to a booster seat, I checked the NHTSA website to see what the standards currently are, as the seat seemed fine. The new government guidelines say that if the seat is not cracked or bent, and if the accident was minor enought that there were no injuries to any passengers, the car could be driven away from the accident, and no airbags deployed, then it's OK to keep the seat. Many people may feel that they should still get a new seat, especially when they are offered a new one by thier insurance company, but I thought you may be interested in this info. Glad to hear your accident was minor! Kim