Killer Car Seats For Sale on eBay (Ways to Tell if Yours is Safe)

• Dangerous fabric seat available on the site
• It is illegal to buy seats that don’t have EU approval
• Tips on buying a safe car seat for your child

Parents have been warned after illegal and lethal car seats are being sold on eBay.

Seats with flammable fabric that offer no protection in the event of a crash are being sold on the site for as little as £8.99, consumer watchdog Which? found.

The charis, which are mainly being shipped from China and Taiwan, are described as being able to “protect your baby when driving”, which has raised fears that hard-up families could be tempted to get one on the cheap.

Alex Neill, from Which?, said, “It’s shocking that these killer car seats are still available for people to buy.

“Families or parents with young children should never buy one.

“This once again shows that the UK’s product safety regime is simply not fit for purpose and the Government can no longer continue to allow it to fail.”

eBay has removed most of the listings, but more have appeared in their place.

A spokesperson for eBay said, “The safety of our customers is our number one priority, and we work closely with trading standards to keep out marketplace safe.

“We have removed these items and will continue to monitor any listings.”

The danger of these fabric seats first came to light in 2014, when Surrey Trading Standards and manufacturer Britax showed a fabric seat falling to pieces in a 30mph crash, as the straps failed and the test dummy was thrown through the windscreen.

Since then, hundreds of chairs were removed from sale in the UK, but this hasn’t fully solved the problem of seats from other countries making their way into the UK.

Only EU approved seats can be used in the UK, so the ones that are being sold to UK parents from Taiwan and China are illegal to use and could be fatal.

Earlier this month, parents were warned that putting their child in a winter coat could also put their life at risk.

Experts at Which? found that extra layers of clothing could potentially create a gap between the child’s body and the seat belt, which wouldn’t give them as much protection in the event of a crash.

Tips on getting a safe car seat:

• Never buy a second hand car seat, as you can’t always tell if it is damaged or how well it works, by just looking at it
• Buy your seat from a retailer who can give you advice on the best one to buy, and who will show you how to correctly fit it in your car
• Check that the car seat has a label on it that shows it is legal to be sold on the UK market
• The instructions for the seat should be written in English, and be clear and make sense. Spelling mistakes and poor grammar are signs that the seat is fake and unsafe
• Don’t be tempted by a cheap price. If the price looks too good to be true, then it probably is.

For deals on genuine, safe car seats, head to LatestDeals.co.uk