Garage Sales and Used Car Seats - What you need to know! #carseatsafety

Summer is finally here and garage sale season is in full swing.  Hunting through garage sales can lead to hidden treasures, but a few things you shouldn’t pick up at a garage sale are car seats or booster seats.  Car seats and booster seats sold at garage sales might seem like a bargain or a good way to grab an extra seat for a second vehicle or a grandparent’s car, but what do you really know about that car seat you are about to pick up?  Chances are, you don’t know the history of the car seat. Was the car seat or booster seat ever in a car crash?  How old is it?  Are all the part and pieces present?  Was the car seat left exposed to the weather or dropped or damaged?   Did the previous owner modify the seat in any way?  Is it recalled or expired?  

All of these questions are incredibly important to know the answers to, and one above all is paramount...do you trust the person selling you the car seat or booster seat to answer all those questions honestly?  It’s perfectly reasonable to borrow or purchase a car seat or booster seat from someone you know and trust, where you can verify the history of car seat or booster seat.  When buying a car seat or booster seat from a stranger, you are taking a risk with the safety of your child in a possible car seat crash.  

This information also applies to any car seats sold at mom-to-mom sales or resale shops.  There are no statutes or regulations that protect a consumer purchasing a used car seat.  It’s buyer beware when buying used car seats or booster seats second hand.  

For more information on child passenger safety, visit our Facebook pages: Safe Kids Macomb County or Macomb County Health Department.

Maria Swiatkowski

Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician - Instructor

Health Educator

Macomb County Health Department

health.macombgov.org