Car Seats - Chino Hills, CA

Hi Jaime,

Unfortunately there aren't any recycling programs for car seats in California. I looked myself because my son had outgrown his and I didn't want to just throw it away either. Mine had never been in an accident. I can tell you that they want you to throw them away especially after an accident because there may be hairline cracks or other unseen damage that could cause future failure even without another accident. Also car seats have an expiration date. It's always much safer to buy a new one than a used one.

Dear Jaime P.
You might try giving it to the fire dept or I believe that State Farm has a recycle program for car seats give them a try. I am glad that all three of your love ones were not harmed in any way. A car can be replaced but not our loved ones.

Good luck,
D. k.

Hi Jaime,

It's so great of you to think of recycling the seat. Sometimes the insurance companies will take it from you but not all do. The seat may NEVER be used for another child once it has been involved in a vehicle collision (any collision over 5 mph). The reasoning is that the seat may NOT hold up in another collision and if it fails the child could be seriously or fatally injured. The problem with the seats is that the damage to them is rarely ever visible but it is there. When I worked for an insurance company we always recommended taking the seat apart before placing it out for pickup by the trash company (so that no one picked it up and tried to use it as it is no longer SAFE). Good luck! Glad to hear your family was not injured.

A.

The car seats can't be refurbished, but you are smart to keep the covers -- messes happen. I believe the seats can be recycled -- check w/ your city about how to do it.

Hey, good to hear that everyone is alright. I have never heard of a place that checks them or a special place to recycle them. It is very true tho that you need to throw them away, they can not be used again. Check around on the web and see if you can find something. Good Luck.

My family was also recently in an accident and thanks to our Britax carseat our 10 month old was just fine. We were told by our insurance company that we could bring out carseat to a CHP location and they were required to dispose of it for us. If that is not convenient and you decide to dispose of it yourself, make sure to cut all the straps out of the chair so that no one can use it again.

Great job buying new seats! Sorry the old one's are trash- but- did you look into Britax's exchange program? I thought I heard something somewhere that they exchanged seats that were in an accident under certain circumstances??? Just thought I'd throw that out there- I dont know the details. Also, I am pretty sure most insurance companies will include the cost of replacements seats on your claim...may want to look into that too :)