getus2oz Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Hi, We have a booked a reccie/validation trip to Perth in a few months and are staying with some friends who have offered us the use of their car. Although this is very kind of them, I have a few doubts about taking up their offer. Firstly, is car insurance easy for them to sort out as we will be on a British driving licence and secondly, we have 2yr old twins and we will need to sort out some carseats prior to our arrival. We don't mind buying or hiring seats but I don't want to be giving them extra work to do? Would car hire with seats included be a better option? Any views, hire costs or websites/shops for carseats would be appreciated. Many Thanks x Jo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest slipshot Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Jo You can hire car seats in Oz, and I only know of places in melbourne. But it is possible. As for using someone's car, they are automatcially covered for third party, but if they wanted more thy just add you to their policy, which may entail a small cost. Ok, found my details and if you look here Baby Equipment Hire - Perth - Baby Hire | Hire for baby | Hire for Kids you can see the places that hire the car seats for you. All very easy. Hope this helps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Martaid15 Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Hi dunno if this will be our any help but we have a 2yr old and a 11 month old and we plan to take our car seats with us and sit them in them on the plane, that way it'll be easier for them to see the TV screen and we won't have to pay for new ones!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest proud2beaussie Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Hi dunno if this will be our any help but we have a 2yr old and a 11 month old and we plan to take our car seats with us and sit them in them on the plane, that way it'll be easier for them to see the TV screen and we won't have to pay for new ones!!! Probably sounds like a good idea but I think you will find that UK car seats are not certified for use in Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neildon Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 We arranged for car seats/ booster seats to come with our hire car when we arrived. I dont think UK car seats are covered in case of an accident. They dont cover the same safety laws, so may be worth checking out before you bring them. Donna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tisme Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Jo You can hire car seats in Oz, and I only know of places in melbourne. But it is possible. As for using someone's car, they are automatcially covered for third party, but if they wanted more thy just add you to their policy, which may entail a small cost. Ok, found my details and if you look here Baby Equipment Hire - Perth - Baby Hire | Hire for baby | Hire for Kids you can see the places that hire the car seats for you. All very easy. Hope this helps... The third party cover is personal injury not third party property damage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest slipshot Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 It's true UK car seats ate not 'authenticated' here in Oz. The question is whether you want the best protection for your kids and if that means using your own rather than hiring car seats with unknown origin, then I know which I will go for, and indeed we are using our UK car seats hear now. The two we bought with us and far better built than ANY on sale here - far stronger and ISOFIX as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest proud2beaussie Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Hi Slipshot, I can undertand why you might prefer to use child seats that you are familiar with and are satisfied with but the Australian standard is considered to be one of the toughest in the world and therefore any seats sold in Australia should be amongst the best in the world ,also I would think that by using UK seats you may be invalidating your insurance policy on the vehicle if the worst happened and an accident occurred. I don't want to be critical here ,that's not my intention,and as I said I understand why you use your favorite seats but I just think you need to be aware of the other view. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest slipshot Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Hi Slipshot,I can undertand why you might prefer to use child seats that you are familiar with and are satisfied with but the Australian standard is considered to be one of the toughest in the world and therefore any seats sold in Australia should be amongst the best in the world ,also I would think that by using UK seats you may be invalidating your insurance policy on the vehicle if the worst happened and an accident occurred. I don't want to be critical here ,that's not my intention,and as I said I understand why you use your favorite seats but I just think you need to be aware of the other view. Nigel Thanks - and I fully understand your comment. However, the Australian standard WAS one of the toughest until ISOFIX was introduced - and the ISOFX system is substantially better than anything else that existed on the market and was introduced as a global system. An ISOFIX car seat is built far stronger than previous seats (it has to be given the requirements) and Australia is thus now out of date with the system and no longer one of the most stringent. It was tougher previously because of the insistence of a top tether holding the seat in place in addition to the seat belt. ISOFIX can have this top tether but does not require it as the seat is in effectively bolted to the chassis and not held in place by seat belts and straps. Thus ISOFIX has superseded this requirement and as such, Australian standards are now a fair bit behind IOSIFX (a global standard). Why Australia has yet to adopt it when virtually everyone else has is beyond me and many car dealers, incidentally? As for the standard of the seats, I've bought here and know that on the old standards, yes they were good. Compare to an ISOFIX seat and there a fair way behind. Thus, while it 'may' invalidate insurance, my concern is my children. I'd rather have an insurance issue to deal with and a safe child than a badly injured child and think 'well at leats I don't have to worry about insurannce'. I know people may not have this opinion, and that's fair enough, and likewise the Australian system is perfectly safe and adequate. It's just there are better ones out there which we have invested in, and I''m not willing to take a backward step. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest proud2beaussie Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Fair enough ,but the Australian standard still considers itself worlds best practice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest slipshot Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Fair enough ,but the Australian standard still considers itself worlds best practice. Good to know - wonder how misguided they are, since they may consider themselves worlds best practice but that is nonsense with the advent of ISOFIX, which arrived in the UK at the end of 2004. 5 years later, all non-Australlian car manufactuers install it (in countries that have adopted it), and people buy it. A car seat bolted to the chassis is so much stronger than a car seat held in place by a belt... One day they'll adopt I'm sure - and I hope they come out of their bubble and realise they are well bhind the game and allow the local market to use ISOFIX - or force them.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest proud2beaussie Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Well I guess that's another thing you and I disagree on,live and let live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest slipshot Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Well I guess that's another thing you and I disagree on,live and let live. Happy to - the facts are that unless you have children in car seats and have ISOFIX seats and can compare, you frankly have little idea or valid relevance to these facts. You may disagree, but it means nothing when you do not have ISOFIX or understand the benefits. You obviously believe the Australian government know more than the majority of European governments, Japan, and the USA, all of whom have adopted a global standard that bolts ot the chassis. How you can preach that a car seat held in by a belt is 'the best is both worrying and scary. I'll say no more since on this point you are not only wrong, but actually have no knowledge to support you argument... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest proud2beaussie Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Actually their is substantial research available online which supports my view,however you appear to believe that only you know what you are talking about so I guess we call it quits,I won't attempt to reason with someone who belittles anyone that they disagree with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calNgary Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Not really been following this thread but just wanted to say they do sell car seats here that bolt in to the car as well as have the belt fixings. I often purchase car seats for my clients pior to their arrival and everyone is happy with the quality of them so far. Booster seats are the same as the UK and the seats for smaller ones look pretty similar to the ones my children had in the UK. Cal x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest proud2beaussie Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 I have just gone online and found a recent (December 2008) study conducted by various academics from the medical and engineering fields in both Australia and Europe comparing the different types of restraint availableit cost me $25.00 and is 80 pages long,so I will print it off and read it later and will give my opinions on it tomorrow. I am prepared to admit I am wrong if the report indicates that I may be,but not until I have read through it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest slipshot Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Not really been following this thread but just wanted to say they do sell car seats here that bolt in to the car as well as have the belt fixings. I often purchase car seats for my clients pior to their arrival and everyone is happy with the quality of them so far. Booster seats are the same as the UK and the seats for smaller ones look pretty similar to the ones my children had in the UK. Cal x Did not know that - but good to know. Certainly no-one had them in any of the stores in Melbourne, and the system you describe is basically ISOFIX. Look in many manufactuers cars in the rear seats (Mazda, Subaru, Toyota to name but a few) will have them IF the car was made overseas. Just no-one knows what it is. Hopefully the system is being introduced - a benefit to everyone... but as with the UK, it will take a long time to take off if the prices are more and for people with new kids to buy them, since most seats just get handed down... Cheers for the input chap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tisme Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 During I think the 1980's all cars manufactured or imported into Australia had to be fixed with anchor points to bolt in a childs car seat, These are located on the rear dash of your car or on the floor of a hatchback. The RAC will fit a car seat for you, at a cost of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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