Car accident and car seat question

Yes

Thanks. My husband thought they wouldn't care because she wasn't in it.

No the insurance HAS to cover it whether or not a child was in it. If a car seat is in the car at the time of an accident, it has to be replaced??

It needs to be replaced and insurance should cover it, but sometimes you have to argue with them. Me and my husband got into a car accident last year and the woman's insurance didn't want to replace the seat at all. It took a lot of arguing before they finally agreed that if we bought another one, they would refund us the money for it.

Well, I'll fight that fight if I have to. It's a new seat because we just moved her out of the infant seat. I'm not taking any chances that it won't do what it's supposed to do if another accident happens.

Definitely get a letter from the car seat company to send to the insurance also.

It also depends which brand of car seat it was if it even needs replacing.

Yes

Thank god the kids weren't there ! Hubby is okay though ?

Oh no! I hope your husband is feeling OK, too?

So scary, glad he's ok!!

Thanks, ladies. He has some whiplash, but nothing serious. Just aches and pains for a few days. Our insurance company told him the car seat won't be replaced if there isn't visible damage, because no one was sitting in it, there was no strain on the straps which is where damage usually occurs. So I'm preparing for a battle.

Message your car seat company and they will send them a letter saying that any car seat, occupied or not, visibly damaged or not, must be replaced!!! They legally can't deny you a new car seat.

@OP I just went through this same thing a couple of months ago. You can go look at my post titled "upset" to see how we handled it. The insurance company told us the same thing at first but we didn't take no for an answer!

I was in a car accident with my son in the car. He was in an infant graco seat. He EMT stated we would need a new one. The doctor at the ER stated we wouldn't. When we reported it to insurance they never brought it up and I didn't because I didn't feel a new one was needed. It was the drivers side hood that was hit my sons seat was on the opposite side of the car. The fender bender didn't even wake him up. If you truly feel a new seat will help you sleep better at night sure, but the "need" to get a new one that most likely looks exactly the same as 1min before the crash I think is a consumer conspiracy spread by people that hear something and assume it MUST be true. The car seats are safety tested like crazy. The can handle a light accident. There not $200 + for nothing.

The general rule is if anyone is hurt, air bags went off, or the car is not able to be driven from the accident, the seat needs to be replaced. If its a graco seat you must replace after EVERY single accident or it may not function properly the next time. Since you said your husband has whiplash, you must replace the seat according to nhtsa.

They say you don't need to for a minor crash. Which means: the car was able to be driven, the door near the seat wasn't damaged, no passengers were injured, No air were deployed, and no damage to the car seat. But graco does not follow those rules. They are replace after every accident.

@pp I believe only Britax has those specifications for accidents. Every other seat is replace in every single accident.

To the pp who doesn't think its "necessary" to replace seats after a small accident.

Its not consumer "myth" its the car seat manufacturers saying you NEED to replace them.

Not all damage is visible, there's pictures of car seats that have been in roll over accidents that look perfectly fine. It doesn't mean that it is.

A car seat is a one and done deal. Why would you ever take the chance that something that is meant to protect your child's life wouldn't work properly because you couldn't be bothered to replace a seat.