Two popular child car seats didn’t hold up in a Consumer Reports crash test - but they both meet government standards

Both car seats have ‘significant structural integrity issues,’ according to Consumer Reports

A nonprofit consumer safety organization has determined two popular car seats have safety issues after a series of recent crash tests.

Consumer Reports found that the Diono LiteClik30 XT car seat and the Peg Perego Primo Viaggio 4-35 Urban Mobility baseless infant seat have “significant structural integrity issues” despite meeting “federal safety standards,” the organization announced earlier this month.

The nonprofit tests their car seats in crashes going 35 mph, making them more rigorous than federal crash tests which are done at 30 mph. The organization says their tests are also “designed to better represent an actual vehicle and rear seat area.”

In two of the three rear-facing crash tests, the Diono car seat detached from its base, sending the car seat flying while the dummy — specified to a 12-month-old’s average height and weight — was strapped in.

“A car seat that does this in a crash poses an increased risk for the child, especially because many crashes aren’t single-impact events,” the organization said. “Imagine a crash where the impact on a vehicle comes from multiple directions, or a crash that’s followed by a rollover.”

The seat of the Diono LiteClik30 XT car seat detached from its base in two of three crash tests by Consumer Reports (Consumer Reports)

Consumer Reports added that the carrier remained attached when installed with the “lower latch anchors and the dummy inside.”

Meanwhile, the Peg Perego model had a “significant[ly]” cracked seat shell along internal seams of the seatback in all four rear-facing crash tests, according to Consumer Reports.

“When the carrier was installed with the lower anchors and the dummy that was similar to a year-old child, the cracking was so severe that multiple pieces of the shell came off, and the crotch buckle pulled completely through the shell,” the organization said, adding the cracking causes an “increased risk of injury” during a crash.

The Peg Perego Primo Viaggio 4-35 Urban Mobility baseless infant had a “significant[ly]” cracked seat shell in all four rear-facing crash tests done by Consumer Reports (Consumer Reports)

If your child is using one of these car seats, Consumer Reports recommends continuing use until you can buy a safer model, as well as reaching out to the manufacturers for more information.

“Using a car seat that shows damage in our crash testing is better than not using one at all,” the organization said.

Consumer Reports also said parents using these car seats with a child close to 22 pounds or approaching their first birthday should “[make] the move to a rear-facing convertible or all-in-one car seat a bit sooner.”

The Independent has contacted Diono and Peg Perego for comment.

Diono told Consumer Reports it is investigating the findings.

“We are always looking to find ways of making our seats safer and more reliable,” a company spokesperson told Consumer Reports.

A Peg Perego spokesperson told Consumer Reports the company conducted new crash tests after the organization reached out and didn’t see the same results.

“These tests, conducted in multiple configurations, did not reveal any structural breakages or raise any concerns about the product’s integrity, and the car seat also showed strong dynamic performance results,” the spokesperson said.