Buyer's guide to group 1 car seats

When to buy
There's some overlap in weight coverage for infant and group one car seats as group one car seats are suitable for use from 9kg, so you may be tempted to transfer your baby into a group one car seat before she's outgrown her infant carrier so that she can enjoy seeing you and more of the world around her. But rear-facing seats do give greater protection for your baby's head, neck and spine than forward-facing seats, so it's better to keep using the infant seat until she has become either too heavy, or too tall for it.

Recaro's Young Expert £180

What to look for
The most important check list items for a car seat are that it conforms to the ECE safety standard R44.03, is comfortable for your baby, and that it fits properly into your car.

Safety
If you're buying the seat from a retailer in Europe then it should conform to European safety standards no problem. But be do wary of looking overseas, for example the US, for a cheaper model, as not all seats sold outside Europe will conform to our safety standards. It's also not a good idea to buy a second-hand car seat, partly because safety standards change over time, but also because you don't know the history of the seat and it may have been damaged in some way that's not immediately obvious.

There's plenty of differentiation between car seats that have passed the safety standard in terms of safety, comfort, durability and ease of use. Do look for seats that are solidly constructed and give good protection from side impact with reinforced sides and appropriate padding. If you're going to be fitting the seat with a seat belt (rather than ISOFIX - see below) then consider a model with seat belt tensioners that will help you get the most secure fit possible with your belt. Make sure that all the materials used are of good quality for durability.

Comfort
A comfy seat is a must, particularly if you travel a lot or are planning on any long journeys. Take a look at the positioning and quality of the padding and for extra features like a head support insert for smaller toddlers. Several seats, such as the Maxi Cosi Priori XP and Britax's Eclipse Si, have a reclining function, which can be a godsend if your baby needs to sleep when on the move. Make sure that the seat harness looks adjustable enough to sit comfortably on a bigger toddler too - can you adjust the height as well as the length of the straps, for example.

Ease of use / portability
The seat harness should be easily adjustable and preferably quick to use, some seats allow you to adjust both straps at the same time, which is really handy. If the seat has a reclining function then see how easy it is to operate. Washable covers are very useful, particularly if you let your child eat in the car. Generally group one seats are a lot heavier than infant seats and aren't designed to be carried about but if you will need to take the seat in and out of the car frequently then have a look for a model that is easy to remove and relatively lightweight.

Fit and ISOFIX

Maxi Cosi's PrioriFix £230

You might think that all car seats will fit in all cars, but sadly, this isn't yet the case. Differences like the shape and fabric of seats and the length of seat belts can affect the proper fitting of a car seat, and while some seat manufacturers do provide lists of cars into which their seats will fit, the best way to check this is to actually try the seat in your car before you buy it. Any reputable car seat retailer will help you with fitting.

Side-stepping around this issue is a new standard for car seat fitting, ISOFIX, which enables you to fit the child's seat directly into ISOFIX points in the car's own seat, rather than using the seatbelt to secure it. More car manufacturers are adopting this standard all the time and if you have a relatively new car then you may well already be geared up for an ISOFIX seat, so it's worth checking (ask your dealer or manufacturer). As well as being more convenient to use, in testing ISOFIX seats are also safer because there's less chance of the seat being incorrectly fitted. Child seat manufacturers are bringing out more and more ISOFIX fitted seats, and even if you don't yet have ISOFIX in your car, if you're thinking about getting a new car in the next couple of years it makes sense to consider a seat that is ISOFIX ready as well as fitting with a seatbelt.

Cost
There is a huge price span in the product category, from the cheapest, at about £50 to over £200. Generally speaking, the more robust, featured and well padded the seat is, the more it will cost, but you can get some excellent seats at around the £80 - £100 mark. Seats fitted with ISOFIX are also generally more expensive, for example Maxi Cosi's ISOFIX version of the popular Priori XP, the Priorifix, is around £100 more expensive than the XP.