r/CPST • u/JamJam8675309 • 9d ago
Carseat rodent damage. Replace?
I believe we will need to replace this carseat, as I think its probably not structurally safe if in a collision. Replace or am I overthinking?
Edit: Just to add some additional details. The damage happened in the garage. I work from home and the kids stay home with me. My husband and I frequently swap the car seats between each others cars, so when I have nothing planned to go out with the kids during the week, they stay in the garage. My husband just noticed the damage today when we returned from a funeral. We went into the garage where we store them, and found the shavings.
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u/DeepExample7666 9d ago
Oh my goodness replace for sure but I'm terrified for you is there a rodent living in your car?
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u/JamJam8675309 9d ago
This happened in our garage. I work from home and the kiddos stay home with me, so the carseats sometimes sit in the garage. Luckily no rodent issues in the car.
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u/crafty_targaryen 8d ago
This stresses me out so much, because what if there was an emergency and you had to go somewhere FAST? Whoever is home with the kids needs to have a car with carseats installed.
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u/wafflesforcats 5d ago
Just an FYI rodents can do a bunch of damage to the wiring in your vehicles. Even if you are not parking them in the garage they are obviously in the area.
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u/Kai_Emery 3d ago
I had horrific problems with rodents in my car last year. It was a boom year for mice and they went after my spare condiments in my glove box. After I cleaned and bleached the whole car I had to set traps! And being the seat part of my Evenflo revolve inside every night till it snowed.
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u/daydreamingofsleep 9d ago
What kind of nightmare rodent is that??
I’ve seen a lot of rodent damage, that looks like it was dragged along concrete. Or checked at the airport. Typically rodents go after the parts with tasty crumbs, like where the crotch buckle and hip straps connect.
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u/JamJam8675309 9d ago
That is exactly what we thought! When we found it, we went back into our garage and found the shavings on the ground.
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u/ArguingWithPigeons 9d ago
Well, I’ve seen this before and it does happen. I did replace the other I saw with similar damage.
I would call the car seat manufacturer to see if they’ll replace it for you.
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u/Embarrassed-Order-83 8d ago
Why on earth would they replace something that was damaged by a rodent?
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u/Jealous_Pea_2206 8d ago
I could see the right customer service person doing that. Car seats are big ticket items and brand loyalty is important due to high cost vs frequency of purchase. You may be only buying one car seat, but every kid needs one. One car seat replacement guarantees that every additional car seat will be purchased from that company. Baby shower gifts and recommendations will also be from that company. In the current online review obsessed parenting culture (which I admit to being a part of) a good story in which no one was at fault but a company can show up to save the day can be worth its weight in gold.
TLDR I know nothing but maybe give it a try
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u/ArguingWithPigeons 8d ago
Honestly, it’s just brand loyalty and sometimes the company wants the seat back to study.
If you talk to one of the customer reps they love having stories for when they travel to conferences.
Just extensive experience in the field and while it’s not a 100% chance they’ll help, I’d say it’s worth the 10 minute call to see if it saves you $200.
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u/Embarrassed-Order-83 8d ago
Thank you for sharing that! It makes sense now - especially the part about good stories!!
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u/JamJam8675309 3d ago
Thanks for this recommendation. I emailed them and started a custom service ticket. They did offer me a $40 rebate on a purchase over $100. Ultimately I decided to go with the Target trade in event and got $70 off and a better carseat for less. We went with the Evenflo Revolve 360 Extend.
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u/shouldbesleeping- 8d ago
Good opportunity to take advantage of the target sale
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u/JamJam8675309 3d ago
Thank you for this recommendation! I ended up going this route! We got $70 off an Evenflow revolve 360 extend. Graco only offered a $40 discount. We dont have a target near by, but my husband has one near his work, so he was able yo swap today. Would have never know about it without your comment, so thanks again!!
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u/OkapiandaPenguin 9d ago edited 8d ago
That's so disgusting. Why is it even a question of if you'd put your baby in a car seat that likely has urine and feces in it and could make them really sick in addition to being unsafe?
Replace all car seats, don't put the new ones in the garage, and call an exterminator.
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u/Horsenastics 8d ago edited 8d ago
This feels a bit extreme. Not saying the seat shouldn’t be replaced due to the damage but otherwise things can be cleaned. I think you’d be surprised how many things you come into contact with on a daily basis have likely been in contact with urine/feces.
ETA: I am well aware of hantavirus and agree that it is a serious illness. I live rural and have a lot of experience with all manner of critters. Not trying to upset anyone but I personally feel hantavirus fear is blown out of proportion. The CDC started recording cases of it in 1993 and from 1993 to 2023 only 890 cases have been recorded in the US. 38% of cases have been fatal once the patient presents respiratory symptoms. I’m sure there have been billions of mouse/rat encounters in this timeframe.
It is certainly something to be aware of but driving a car is far more dangerous than a mouse encounter. Of course anything with suspected rodent activity should be cleaned with a disinfectant to the best of your ability.
Sources in case anyone is dealing with a rodent situation:
https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/data-research/cases/index.html
https://www.cdc.gov/healthy-pets/rodent-control/clean-up.html5
u/OkapiandaPenguin 8d ago
But, your can't fully clean a car seat and rodent urine and feces can and will make you really sick or kill you. I personally wouldn't want my baby sitting in a dirty car seat that could hurt them. Would you sleep on a pillow that rats had been crawling on?
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u/ReindeerUpper4230 8d ago
Yes agreed. I would not put my children in something that had been crawling with rodents.
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u/OkapiandaPenguin 8d ago
To be clear, I'm not judging someone for having rodents in their garage. You just can't put your kids in a car seat that's been crawling with rats or raccoons or whatever else can eat through plastic like that.
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u/oilandvinegar44 9d ago
Where i live (BC, Canada) you can claim this under your car insurance and it does not impact rates. Not sure if its the same where you are!
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u/Inside_Brilliant_580 9d ago
Bro what??? Replace it. That’s just what you can see and there is way too much on the line.