Driving away with "total peace of mind" should be a given when it comes to installing a child's car seat – and that is what Halfords' seat-fitting service promises on its website. But, as one family discovered, it is essential to check before you even think of turning the ignition key.
Sam and Kathryn Lindo were dismayed to discovered they had been driving baby daughter Harriett around for three weeks before realising she was in danger.
They had used the Halfords service – which claims to have "over 2,000 trained child car seat specialists in stores nationwide to help you choose the right seat for your child and the perfect fit for your car" – at a branch in Cornwall.
As Sam explains, the first seat fitted was a display model: "There was just one young chap who was trained, working that day. He tried to install it on his own, but had problems. I managed to solve one, which was how to have the seat rotate the other way. The seat belt was clicked into place, and he was satisfied it was fitted.
"We then asked for a non-display model, so he removed the seat and we had to wait 20 minutes while the staff tried to find one. Our baby grew tired of waiting, so we made an offer for the display one. He fitted it back in to the car and we paid and left.
"It was three weeks later that my wife noticed there were other hooks around the base that weren't being used. I finally read the instructions and realised the lap part of the belt was meant to go round the seat. Halfords should have made it clear that parents should read the instructions. We were stupid enough to place our daughter's life in the hands of some young chap."
The Lindos' experience is far from unusual. Data collected by local authorities suggests that two thirds of all children travelling in cars are being put at risk of injury by poorly fitted car seats.
And consumer champion Which? has found that buying from a retailer that offers to fit it is no guarantee it will be installed correctly. It mystery-shopped 43 stores around the country, including Mothercare and Babies R Us, and seven independent retailers, and found mistakes in almost half of cases.
Data supplied to The Observer by road safety officers around the country suggests that 66% of child car seats are incorrectly fitted. The data, collected at seat-checking sessions in supermarket car parks during the summer, reveals a litany of problems from incorrectly routed seat belts to harnesses that are too high, or too loose.
■ In Portsmouth of 141 seats checked only 41 (29.7%) passed their safety check; 34 (24%) failed on a major point: six were the incorrect stage of seat for the child; five were far too old to be in use; and seven were condemned by road safety officers.
■ In the Wirral 37 of 47 seats (79%) were not fitted properly. Of these, road safety officers were able to adjust 33, but four were not suitable for the child.
■ In Oxfordshire road safety officers found problems in 77% of cases, with badly routed seatbelts accounting for 29% of mistakes. Checks revealed that 87% of rear-facing seats – those aimed at birth to around a year – were incorrectly fitted, while 75% of forward-facing seats needed adjusting.
And this could just be the tip of the iceberg as the parents taking part had volunteered to have their child seats checked.
Julie Dagnall, principal road safety officer at Wirral Council, and a national specialist for Road Safety Great Britain, says that "anecdotal evidence" from road safety officers suggests that only 3% of restraints, when checked in police safety campaigns, were correct. That means only one in 35 children is travelling safely.
At recent stop-and-check days held by Tayside police, only 49% were incorrectly fitted, but this included booster seats for older children, which the force's road safety co-ordinator, Marian Scott, says are difficult to get wrong. More worryingly, six of the vehicles stopped were carrying children with no restraint at all, and four were using seats that had to be condemned.
No one knows how badly fitted seats contribute to accidents – police are not required to collect this data. "But we know from crash testing that seats which are incorrectly fitted can lead to worse outcomes," says Duncan Vernon, road safety manager for England at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.
Which?'s research focussed on the sale of group one seats, designed for children weighing 9-18kgs – typically those aged from around nine months upwards.
Experts say suitability is based entirely on weight, and recommend that parents continue to use a group 0 rear-facing seat until their child has completely grown out of it. Only when they reach 13kg should they switch to a 0+ seat.
Researchers posed as parents of an 11-month-old baby, weighing 9kg, who they said was ready for the next stage seat. Although weight is the fundamental factor, in 15 out of the 43 stores visited staff failed to ask about it.
Three assistants at seven Babies R Us stores failed to ask this vital question, and the figure was the same at Mamas & Papas, even though its online buying guide begins with the advice: "It's important to go by weight rather than age, as children grow at different rates and car seats are designed and tested for safety by weight."
Mothercare's website says: "Having your child's car seat fitted safely is very important. With our 'free safe fit' service one of our trained fitting experts will be happy to check that the car seat you buy fits both your child and your car."
But in the tests three staff recommended models that didn't suit the car. Which? said staff "were reading facts from seat labels, rather than knowing products well".
Halfords branches fared badly when checked. Which? said it "found no staff in stores we visited with a broad knowledge of child car seats" and, again, staff seemed to be getting all of their information from seat labels. Just three of seven stores visited managed to fit a seat correctly.
Which? also visited a Manchester branch of Tesco, where the retailer has a baby centre selling car seats – usually it just sells them online. Researchers said the sales assistant "failed on several counts", including not asking the baby's weight or understanding how Isofix seats work. He even claimed that a major brand "has just released the first forward-facing infant carrier": if such a seat did exist, it would break UK laws.
The best-performing stores were the seven independent retailers tested. But, again, these were hit and miss, with two failing to ask about weight and two not advising that the rear-facing seat be used for as long as possible.
However, one store said it would not sell a seat as the baby had not reached the required weight and was not present.
Of the high street retailers, John Lewis provided the best service, although in one store fitting was not offered, with the assistant claiming staff were not insured to go in the car park.
In a statement Halfords said: "We treat the care and safety of children very seriously and the Which? findings are very disappointing. We have worked tirelessly in partnership with RoSPA to ensure all colleagues have access to the highest standards of information and practical training. This means we can provide all customers with the product and advice that ensures every child can travel safely".
The retailer said it had, this year, ensured that around half a million children were sitting in the right car seat, but that, where it learned of problems, it went back to the individuals concerned.
Mamas & Papas said it was "surprised and disappointed" by Which?'s findings. "On reviewing the criteria you have tested, we accept we have severely underperformed and have put a clear action plan in place to resolve these issues. It will be completed by the end of October and we are confident that any repeat mystery shopping, once it has been executed, would deliver significantly improved results. We will also be regularly reviewing these changes closely at senior level management."
A spokesman for Tesco said the retailer was not claiming to offer a fitting service and that it was unfair to judge the quality of advice on just one store visit.
RoSPA said the inconsistency of the stores' performance was worrying for parents. "It indicates that retailers could be doing more to train their staff and guarantee that seats are being properly fitted," says Vernon.
■ We're keen to hear your stories. Email us at cash@observer.co.uk, tweet at @hilaryosborne or use #carseatsafe or comment below
Join our campaign
The local authority and Which? research has been handed to The Observer as we launch a campaign to highlight the problem of badly fitted car seats and encourage retailers and parents to ensure they are using seats properly. We want:
■ Retailers to ensure all their fitters are fully trained
■ That retailers who sell online. offer fitting services in-store where appropriate, or offer parents details of where they can find local fitting services.
■ Better information for expectant parents on the importance of buying the right seat and fitting it correctly
■ More manufacturers to provide "fit finder" services, like Britax — this shows which seats are compatible with their car.
One of the best ways to ensure your seat is properly fitted is to visit a clinic run by your local road safety team. We have teamed up with supermarket Morrisons and some road safety officers to run clinics at the beginning of October.
Which? is offering readers a trial subscription to its website for £1, allowing access to its car seat tests. Call 0800 389 88 55, quoting WHICH54P, or visit which.co.uk
