Nowadays, there are many car seats available in the market and many parents are uncertain which car seats they should buy for their children. When entering to the car seat world, it is essential to know what the different types of car seats are, as well as the approved car seat laws & safety testings.
In the UAE, by law, all children must be safely fastened in a correct child car seat for their age and size. A child who is properly secured in an approved car seat is less likely to be injured than the one who is not.
The car seats are divided into categories according to the weight of the children they are for These correspond broadly to different age groups, but it is the weight of the child that is most important when deciding what type of child seat to use.
Below are the type of car seats;
It is very important to ensure that your child travels in a car seat suitable for his/her height and weight, but also stick to the certified child restraint systems. If you don't have the right car seat, your could be putting your child in danger with catastrophic consequences.
All car seats sold in UAE, they must undergo accident simulation testing to determine whether or not a seat is safe enough to be sold. There are currently two regulations: ECE R44 or ECE R129(also known as i-Size)
ECE R44 Car Seat Regulation
This is an older regulation, but still current, many seats available on the market are tested to the ECE R44 standard. This regulation was introduced since 1982, the car seats are approved accordingly to the child's weight. The dummy is put through mandatory frontal and rear testing.
Its also important to note that the sale of R44 car seats are coming to an end in EU from 01st September 2023.
ECE R129/i-Size Car Seat Regulation
ECE R129 (i-Size) is the most recent safety regulation. It was introduced in 2013, the main idea behind introducing the R129 regulation was to make it easier to install the seat with ISOFIX, to test side impact collisions and focus on children's height instead of weight. The dummy is put through mandatory frontal, rear and the additional side impact collisions testing is conducted at 15mph.
ADAC - Random selection consumer testing
ADAC can't test all seats, they are preselected on the basis of popularity. The ADAC test is a composite test meaning that the test consists of more than 1 criteria. The 3 major test-criteria's in the ADAC test are tested and weighted according to -Safety(50%), Operations(40%) and ergonomics(10%). For a seat to reach a good overall score, it must perform well in all three parts of the test. Rear-facing car seats with belt-attachment usually perform well in the crash test part of the ADAC, but the ergonomics/handling part of the test ranks belt-attached seat very low due to the risk of incorrect handling and difficult installation. Meaning forward facing seats are ranked better even though it is 5 times safer to travel rear-facing vs forward-facing. All our car seats are awarded ADAC scores, and while we do not recommend basing your purchase on the likes of ADAC scores, it's a good indicator of the quality of the seat. A safe seat may scored down for things such as the ease of installing the seat.
The Swedish Plus Test - The toughest crash-test in the world
The Swedish Plus Test is an optional test that was founded in 2009 to encourage manufacturers of car seats to develop safer car seats as a result of concern that European seats were not crash tested to a sufficient standard to be sold in Sweden. By studying real accidents where children suffered severe injuries in their neck and head, new lower stress-limits in neck-forces were introduced as an important safety criterion.
It is recognized as the toughest crash test on earth, and the only one that guarantees that your child is not exposed to exposed to excessive forces on the neck that can threaten his life during a collision. The car seats are being tested with a higher speed, shorter braking distance and measurement on the exerted forces on the neck of a dummy. Learn more about Swedish Plus Test.
Book your free car seat consultation with one of our specialists. We will recommend you the safety seat fits not only your child, your car but also your needs.
