Britax recalls child safety seat for design defect

Letters are in the mail to registered owners of the Britax Decathlon child safety seat to alert consumers that a safety recall is underway for models built between Feb. 12, 2005 and July 31, 2007. At issue is a defect that allows the adjuster to pop out of position under certain circumstances. The letter to owners includes rivet fasteners to keep the adjuster in position.

The recall, conducted in concert with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), involves 121,109 units of model E9L47. Britax has gotten complaints from parents that the adjuster housing popped out of position when they were adjusting the harness. (The adjuster is used to tighten the harness around the child.) No deaths or injuries have been reported.

According to the notice, in certain circumstances the adjuster may move out of position making it difficult for caregivers to properly adjust the harness. Because of this, Britax is sending owners two rivet fasteners (plus an extra) that will secure the adjuster to the child restraint. Britax has set up a Web site for the recall, www.decathlonrecall.com, and is also featuring an instruction video on its site www.britaxusa.com.

Owners of the car seat who did not send in the registration card can call 800-683-2045 or register online at www.britaxusa.com. Even owners of the seat who have not experienced problems are strongly advised to make the repair.

Note: Consumer Reports listed the Britax Decathlon as an appropriate seat for obese children according to the manufacturer's specifications.

Comments

[Tony]

I would like to know how is it that the holes to accept the rivets just happened to already be there on the original child seat? It must be either 1) Britax decided not to install the rivets to save assembly costs, 2) the rivets were preinstalled for sale in other countries with tougher standards, or 3) rivet installation were accidentally overlooked during assembly. Which was it, or is there another explanation? Thanks.