Safety alerts added to 4 child car seats in the past year – which ones are they?
Picking out a baby or child car seat can be a confusing minefield for parents because of the many types, sizes and regulations.
Luckily, Which? car seat tests will help you to pick out the very best models and our reviews identify any that we feel are unsafe. Car seats that don't meet our high standards (our tests go beyond the legal requirements) are flagged with a Safety Alert label.
These Safety Alerts are free for everyone to see on Which.co.uk – you don't have to be a Which? member. We've done this because we believe it's important that all parents are made aware of potential safety problems. We've added four Safety Alerts to car seat reviews since May 2022.
Read on to find out which models these are, or head straight to our car seat reviews for information on all tested models, including our Best Buy car seat reviews.
Which car seats had Safety Alerts added recently?
Avionaut Sky 2.0, £379
This car seat can be used for a long span of your child's life - it's approved for use from birth up until your child is either 125cm tall or weighs 23kg, which is usually around six or seven years old. It's installed in your car with the vehicle's three-point seatbelt, and can't be clicked into Isofix points.
This seat passed the regulatory tests required for UN ECE Reg 129, and in our crash tests, which go beyond the legal requirements, it performed well and is a very safe seat.
But our lab technicians discovered issues with the installation, which could mean it’s not fitted properly and may not protect your baby or child sufficiently in a crash.
Read our review of the Avionaut Sky 2.0 to find out more about the Safety Alert.
Joie i-Spin Grow, £400
This Joie model is a rotating car seat that's installed via Isofix connectors, and with the vehicle seatbelt once your child measures 100cm.
It's approved to R129 regulations for children from 40-125cm (birth to age six) and passed the regulatory tests that allow it to be sold.
But in our tests, which are conducted at higher speeds and forces than the standard requires, this seat scores poorly for frontal-impact tests. We also identified issues with installation and fitting, which could mean the seat is not used as safely as it should be.
Read the full review of the Joie i-Spin Grow for more information.
Kinderkraft Comfort Up, £54
The Kinderkraft Comfort Up is a group 1/2/3 car seat for children weighing 9-36kg (ages one to 12). It's installed via the vehicle seatbelt and there are no Isofix connectors.
This seat is approved to older R44 car seat regulations, which don't include a side-impact test. But Which? car seat tests go beyond the legal requirements for both R44 and R129 regulations, as we think these more accurately reflect real-life crash risks.
In our side-impact tests, this car seat scored poorly. We also identified issues with installation and fitting, which could mean the seat is not used as safely as it should be.
Click through to the Kinderkraft Comfort Up review to read the full Safety Alert.
Urban Kanga TV107 Portable Travel Car Seat, £129
This is a group 1 car seat, which means it’s approved to the older R44 regulations for children weighing 9-18kg, which is around 12 months to four years. As its name suggests, it's quite lightweight and portable, weighing just 3.1kg.
This child car seat passed the regulatory tests required for R44 regulations. But in our own tests, which are conducted at higher speeds and forces than the standard requires, this seat scored poorly for side-impact tests. We also identified issues with installation and fitting, which could mean the seat is not used as safely as it should be.
We've since discovered that Urban Kanga is no longer stocking this car seat on its website, nor is it stocked on Amazon. However, it may still be available via second-hand or online marketplaces.
Read more about the issues we encountered in the Urban Kanga TV107 review.
Which? car seat testing
We crash-test child car seats that we review, carry out fitting checks with experts, parents and their children, and assess the comfort and ergonomics of each seat. This makes us different from other parenting websites, where reviews are based only on the ease of use for parent testers and comfort for their children.
Our crash tests go beyond the minimum requirements for the current car seat regulations (R44.04 and R129) and are derived from tests by Euro NCAP, the organisation that carries out crash tests on cars.
Safety makes up 60% of the total test score, which means that the most important element of the product – whether it will protect your child or not in a crash – is reflected in the score.
Sign up to our Family newsletter to receive alerts for a range of safety stories, including car-seat recalls. And you should always take the time to register your new car seat with the manufacturer, so the company has your details and you can be automatically alerted if there is a safety recall.
For more information on Which? car seat testing, read our guide on How we test car seats.
