^^ an awful lot of those points are opinion only. Basically stating 'children don't like rear facing' as a valid argument against seems a bit ridiculous. A child rear faced from birth won't know any different.

I agree that maybe it isn't as clear cut as some would have you believe, but that partic list holds no water IMO. And I wouldn't consider myself an ERF die hard. I do believe rear facing for the first year should be recommended.

Both my girls were FF from 9 months old.

My husband is a firefighter and a lot of their time they spend at car accidents.

He has always said you are only as safe as the car you drive........
their are pro's and con's to both FF and RF depending on the accident which you cant odd's. He was more than confident that a Good quality FF car seat was SAFE for our daughters, if he felt that strongly, knowing all his training and experience he has had (and some of his experience being not pleasant) then he would obviously not allow my girls to travel FF.

i was/am (my girls are almost 7 and 3 now) more than comfortable with my girls FF.
you have to do what you feel is best for you and stop reading all the horror stories. x

the "safest" thing for your child is to wrap them up in cotton wool, never let them go in a car or indeed anywhere where there is any chance of them getting hurt. perhaps we should all invest in nice padded rooms with only soft toys in. maybe we need to only give them liquid foods to limit the chance of choking...although it is still possible....hmm this IS difficult!

Ok I'm being flippant! We can only do as much as we can while still ensuring that our children live a full life! There is a big difference between the difference in safety between a newborn being RF vs FF and a 2 year old. We kept our little one in her RF class 0+ seat as long as we could but by 14 months she was trying to see what was going on in the front of the car and leaning forward and putting her head as far round hte side to see forward as she could - and yes her harness was fitted securely. Personally I think a head out teh side of a car seat trying to look forward completely removes any extra safety of being RF!

And yes she had been RF since both so "didn't know any different" but she's perfectly aware of the fact that everyone else in the car was always FF!

In some circumstances RF are safer than FF but choice of car seat isn't based on that one fact alone, anymore than I bet most of you looked at the safety of your car compared to every other one on the market - I bet if we start looking we'll find that X's car is 2, 3, 4, 5 times safer than Y's!

FF carseats AREN'T unsafe! And no should be sat there racked with guilt because they have chosen to put their LO in one. Yes keep them in their class 0 RF for as long as possible but then chose a good quality seat that fits securely into your car and suits you and your family best! Then drive as safely as you can and enjoy your LO while they're still little enough to be in a car seat cause all too soon they'll be asking the same questions about what seat to put your grandchildren in!

I am confused about this point as physics says otherwise in some cases:

*A rear impact in these seats is the same as a head on accident in a front facing seat*

Rear impact is not the same unless the car being hit is stationary. Head on collisions in moving cars going at similar speeds is like hitting a brick wall. Rear collisions in cars at similar speeds cause much less of an impact as they are not opposing forces. Also in a number of rear collisions the the front driver usually reacts by breaking and this causes the same lurch that a forward collision would. It's a moot point but most fatal accidents are head on collisions.

Rear facing or front facing is an individual decision but it's what you feel comfortable with after your own research x

As Barnie says FF isn't unsafe as such.

I turned her :-)

This morning was the last straw. Went to Wilkinson which is only 10mins away but had to take the car as I needed paint and a mop. Well, it took me 10mins to get LO in the bloody seat, LO screamed the whole way there (and back) and when trying to get her back out at the end I thought it was bloody ridiculous! Not to mention I am in so much pain now I can't move and am going to bed. I am probably about 20times more likely to crash the car with LO like that!

So I decided to turn it round on spur of the moment before I chickened out. It fitted really well and easily and is very solid and secure. LO is reclined well and really secure with her 5 point harness so I'm happy and not going to feel guilty over it. I was even brave enough to take her a little drive on a 60 road without freaking out. Go me!

If you have a unhappy crying rfing child it has to add to your stress levels and make you more likely to make a mistake or rash judgment and cause an accident. THere is another thread on here just now with somebodys LO ERF who crys in Mums car but is happy ffing in Grans.
The site does say LOs should stay in infant carriers as long as possible. But the extract is purely talking about 2nd stage seats.
However it does give the OP what she is looking for, a more balanced view of ERF.

Sounds like you've made the right decision! You will note your car seat is one of the ones that site recomends.
My smurf went throught a phase of hating the car seat when he was 4/5 months. I was a nervious reck driving. I wouldn't like to think of the number of times I gambled or went without thinking at junctions as I couldn't stand the crying.

i think patch was just saying they weren't very good arguments, which they aren't, so they don't do a good job of reassuring those who have to FF.

also loads of babies hate their infant carrier but are fine in a proper ERF seat. oh my god Scarlett hates hers, if she continues to hate it i'll put her in Ruby's ERF as soon as she hits 9kg which is the min weight for that seat, Ruby can then go FF as she is so much older. They can see out of the window in an ERF seat.

I didn't really want an ERF v FF debate ladies ;-)

I agree ERF is safer in certain circumstances and I certainly think all LOs should be kept rear facing until 12-15months whenever they are ready, I will keep the next one rear facing as long as possible too. I'm quite happy I've turned LO now though, I know she's ready and am quite happy I made the right decision for us!

Locked as requested by OP!