Back in 2014, Which? and Surrey Trading Standards exposed cheap fabric child car seats that literally fell apart in crash tests. At just 30mph, one seat disintegrated and the dummy child was thrown through the windscreen. Trading Standards called them “killers.”
Fast forward to today and Which? has found the same unsafe seats still being sold on sites like eBay, Shein, Wish, ManoMano and Little Dreams. Some were as cheap as £12.50 compared to £80 or more for properly approved seats.
The problem is they don’t meet UK safety standards. Legally, only EU-approved seats marked with R44 or R129 codes, shown on an orange label, can be used in the UK. These dodgy ones don’t pass crash testing and often can’t even be secured properly to the car.
One so-called "car seat" listing on eBay even admitted it shouldn’t be used in cars, suggesting instead it was fine for “electric vehicles or two-wheelers.” Experts say strapping your child into one of these is no better than sitting them on a cushion and hoping for the best.
Which? is now calling for tougher rules to stop dangerous products slipping onto online marketplaces. They are urging parents not to buy second-hand or ultra-cheap seats and instead to buy from trusted retailers who can advise on fitting.
Campaigners like Good Egg Safety say families should not “skimp” when it comes to child car seats because the risks are literally life or death.
Meanwhile, sites including eBay and Shein insist safety is a “top priority” and say they have removed the flagged listings and tightened checks. But Which? says kids will remain at risk until online platforms are legally forced to block unsafe products.
