Child Car Seat Complaints

My husband secured our infant into the car seat and attached the seat to the base installed in the car. He then drove our child. When he removed the car seat it was discovered the right side of the seat (when facing) was not clicked in and could be lifted up. When he removed the seat he noticed the clip on the inside of the shell, that connects to the base, was completely missing meaning he had been driving our child only partially secured. When we turned the car seat to take a picture the retractable clip on the outside of the same portion fell out. We just got this car seat in XXX (new) and have only used it since our son was born at XXX. He is [XXX] old and well below the weight limits. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The foam under the headrest was discovered to be cracked when the cover was removed while performing the the repair on the recall for the babies eating the foam (can't find the recall paperwork now). The instructions provided with the remedy for the recall said if the foam was cracked to contact evenflo's hotline immediately. I contacted evenflo on July 28th via phone and was emailed a request for more information. I provided more information and video of the damage on XXX. No reply was received acknowledging the receipt of the requested information so I emailed on XXX asking to confirm receipt. I emailed again on XXX, and Evenflo finally responded on XXX with the following reply: "Thank you for reaching out to Evenflo regarding your Revolve360 car seat. I'm sorry to hear your headrest foam has become broken/detached. If the foam is detached, tape is allowed and no glue, and the seat pad holds the foam in place, the seat is still safe to use. If the foam is broken in larger pieces, you have all the pieces, they fit together like a puzzle, tape allowed and no glue, and the seat pad holds the foam in place, the seat is still safe to use. Evenflo tests all car seats to energy levels approximately twice that of the federal crash test standard. Additionally, our engineers developed the Evenflo Side Impact test protocol, which simulates the energy in severe 5-star government side impact tests conducted for automobiles. Now we are leading the industry by incorporating a dynamic rollover test. Rest assured, as long as the foam is in place, broken or not, it is still doing its job of absorbing crash forces." I no longer feel safe using the carseat with my [XXX] and wanted to reach out to the NHTSA to verify that cracked headrest foam is safe to use. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The internal metal reinforcement rod broke through the plastic shell of my Turn2Me car seat while my daughter was in it. We were not involved in an accident. I was driving home, she started crying and fussing, and when I got home and opened her door, I saw the rod sticking out.

The contact owns a Diono Child Safety Seat, Model Type: Radian 3R, Model Number: 50620-us-01, Manufactured Date: April 22, 2023. The contact stated that while unbuckling the child from the child seat, the buckle housing plastic part snapped. The failure occurred outside of a crash. The consumer was concerned about the structural integrity and that the fractured plastic piece compromised the restraint system, and the car seat would not perform as needed in a crash. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact to purchase a replacement buckle.

It is available for inspection, but has not been inspected by a professional. There is an active case opened with Graco, the manufacturer. The issue that we're experiencing is that the straps are coming loose mid-drive. When I picked my son up from daycare and drove him home (which is roughly a 30-minute drive), I arrived in the driveway and found him suspend by the straps, the straps completely loose, his head almost touching his toes. Luckily, he was okay and there had been no major breaking on the way home. When looking at the car seat, my husband and I noticed that there is no guard over the button that loosens the straps to put the baby in. As my son is now [XXX] old, he is practicing sitting up. When he kicks his feet on top of the padding exactly above the strap release button and leans forward in the car seat against the straps to practice sitting up, this loosens the straps (I have a video demonstrating the issue upon request). I suspect on the day that I found him in the backseat hanging by the straps, he kicked loose the straps, tired himself out, fell asleep and then at some point when I came to a red light, the slowing of the car caused him to fall forward. Luckily, he was okay but this design seems unsafe. It's also possible that many parents are experiencing this but the straps only come slightly loose because the baby leans forward AND kicks the button at the same time only a couple of times and then kicks in a different spot or calms down before the straps become dramatically loosened. In this case, parents may dismiss this as human error when in fact the baby's actions (kicking the button and leaning against the straps at the same time) lined up briefly to only cause minor loosening. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I purchased my CYBEX Callisto G 360 on April 26, 2025. The harness does not stay tight: after I pull the adjuster strap to tighten it and let go, I can pull on the shoulder straps and they loosen again without pressing the harness release button. I’m concerned the harness adjuster is not holding the restraint securely, so I have stopped using the seat. It's extremely dangerous for this component to be failing.

My Evenflo REO car seat, model CS26021538 (Danvers), is included in NHTSA Recall 26C004. I learned of the recall and contacted Evenflo ParentLink because I am concerned about continuing to use a recalled child restraint. The recall involves the headrest potentially changing position under certain conditions. Evenflo states that the seat may continue to be used only within specified headrest positions while a remedy is being developed. My seat is currently within the permitted range. However, Evenflo has told me that there is currently no ETA for the remedy kit and has instructed me to continue using the seat under the interim guidelines until the kit becomes available. I am not comfortable relying on a recalled child restraint for my child for an indefinite period of time while waiting for a remedy with no estimated availability date. I am also concerned that the eventual remedy will require me to install or perform a repair myself. I do not feel comfortable personally performing a safety-related repair on my child’s car seat because an incorrect installation could potentially affect the seat’s performance in a crash. I contacted Evenflo and requested an alternative, such as an immediate replacement with a non-recalled car seat or a refund/reimbursement so I could purchase a comparable non-recalled seat. Evenflo did not address those requests and instead advised me to register the seat and continue using it until the remedy kit is available. No injury or crash has occurred, and the seat has not been independently inspected. My concern is the lack of an available remedy or ETA and whether the recall remedy is being adequately and reasonably implemented for consumers who are uncomfortable continuing to use the recalled child restraint or performing the eventual repair themselves. I am requesting that NHTSA review this situation and determine whether additional action regarding the timing or implementation of the recall remedy is appropriate.

I noticed while buckling my child this week that the magnetic chest clip easily detaches if even slight pressured is applied and that the two buttons do not need to be pressed in order for the clip to come apart. I tried multiple times to reconnect it so that it "locks" into place but each time it would come apart easily. I've contacted Chicco and they have said they've sent a replacement clip with instructions on how to install it.

[XXX] child is able to press the buckle button and chest clip button and completely free themselves from the car seat. Buckle button does not meet federal safety regulations of required force to release buckle button and is easily pushed to release harness. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Nuna RAVA convertible car seat, model CS05107RFD, manufactured 10/15/2021, purchased Jan 2022. Harness failure after completing the remedy for Recall 24C-002. Both of my seats had never shown any harness problem before the recall notice. In 2025, I received the remedy kit for both and followed the instructions to clean the harness adjuster and replace the seat pads. The seats worked normally until May 13, 2026, when the harness on one would not lock and the straps would not stay tight. The failed component was the front harness adjuster. I noticed the failure while removing my child after a drive. The harness was loose even though I had tightened it at the start of the drive, and it would not lock when I tightened it again. I recorded a video right after removing my child and the seat from the car. A harness that loosens during a drive cannot properly restrain a child in a crash. No crash occurred and my child was not injured. No one has inspected the seat. I still have the seat and video and can make both available. The harness appears to be working again when I just checked (September 2026). It’s been sitting in our office, unused, since May. I removed the other Nuna Rava seat from our other car in May after the failure, though it worked normally, and bought two seats from a different brand. I believe the remedy did not adequately fix the original problem. I performed it as directed and the harness still failed. I ask NHTSA to review whether the remedy is adequate and consider expanding the recall to include a replacement or refund for all seats under the original recall.