Babies in cabs???

[BigweeBigwee]

Just wondering how you transport your baby safely when you have to take a cab!

I understand you can book baby seats with some cab companies and some come with seats but what do you do when you have to take a cab on the spur of the moment? I am in Brisbane.

I am going away early next year with my baby who will be 5 months by then and have to go to and from a couple of airports - what's the best way to tackle that and can I expect to pay more money if I order a cab with a baby seat? Please don't tell me I have to lugg his heavy baby seat all over the state!

[WeThree]

Only some cabs have baby seats, so its not always easy to get one on the spur of the moment, but you CAN get them :yes: If you get to a cab rank and none of the cabs have one, ask them to radio you one that does have a proper seat and they will, and no, you should not be charged any more for a cab with a baby seat. If you are ringing for a cab, just be sure to make sure that you mention that you need a carseat, I have found in the past that the wait has never been much longer than when you call for a cab without one, more and more cabs seem to have one in their boot these days, or at least they do where I live.

[ann n mick]

hi good question i dont know i know that when your child is 12 months old they can be on there own with out a car seat
i would call up the company and ask them better to be safe then sorry

[daisyxs]

hmm, ive never seen or heard of cabs having carseats. :o
i usually just hold DD in between my legs and have my seat belt around her

[Dannielle]

Hi, I know a taxi driver. Some have capsules and some have car seats. If you book one make sure you specify you need a capsule or rear facing seat. (Which I am presuming you would if your baby is 5 months.)

It's also true that if the baby is 12 months or over that they don't need to be in a car seat. Not that I like the idea.

[jocr]

Just wondering how you transport your baby safely when you have to take a cab!

I understand you can book baby seats with some cab companies and some come with seats but what do you do when you have to take a cab on the spur of the moment? I am in Brisbane.

I am going away early next year with my baby who will be 5 months by then and have to go to and from a couple of airports - what's the best way to tackle that and can I expect to pay more money if I order a cab with a baby seat? Please don't tell me I have to lugg his heavy baby seat all over the state!


I rang yellow cab in Brisbane earlier this year to enquire about the same thing and they said that they don't provide baby seats because of workplace health and safety. They do have anchor points for the seats, and you are able to put your own seat into these cabs, but it is best to let them know this when booking. I can understand you not wanting to lug the seat!!!!

[Trumpet]

I called all Brisbane cab companies and was told that yes they do but also they said that in qld it is ok to travel short trips with bubs being held in your arms. I needed to find out as we were flying to Mackay for a funeral. I wasn't comfortable travelling to the airport in brisbane so had my sister drive but when we got to mackay the hotel was 5mins down the road and boy did I hang on tight to my baby the whole way there and swore that it will never happen again I was so scared that we would have an accident.

[stellarella]

Correct me if im wrong but I dont think you are required to have a child in a car seat in a cab Qld....how ridiculous, especially considering the way they drive...I read it in a 'kidsafety' booklet...

I would certainly want my bubba in a seat especially considering how brisbane cabbies drive...think a 1 legged labrador on speed driving you around with his eyes closed...

[stellarella]

I called all Brisbane cab companies and was told that yes they do but also they said that in qld it is ok to travel short trips with bubs being held in your arms.

Oh so Im not crazy, you heard it too.


PS. sorry for dodgy post above...seems I am the 1 legged lab trying to write posts...

[Trumpet]

Correct me if im wrong but I dont think you are required to have a child in a car seat in a cab Qld....how ridiculous, especially considering the way they drive...I read it in a 'kidsafety' booklet...

I would certainly want my bubba in a seat especially considering how brisbane cabbies drive...think a 1 legged labrador on speed driving you around with his eyes closed...

No I think your talking about New South Welshman cab drivers, us Qld's drive fabulously ;)

[Trumpet]

Oh so Im not crazy, you heard it too.


PS. sorry for dodgy post above...seems I am the 1 legged lab trying to write posts...

No your not crazy sweetie but it would be interesting to know what the other states rules are and if they are not the same. why?

[cwsmum]

i usually just hold DD in between my legs and have my seat belt around her
I used to do this on the rare occasion I had to catch a cab with my nephew when he was a bub and actually had a cab driver refuse to drive til I had taken the seat belt off him and just had it on me. The driver said that in an accident, or even just heavy braking, that the weigh of you is trippled (or something like that) and then that is forced onto the bub who then gets crushed between you and the seatbelt, causing horrible injuries or even killing the bub.
I don't know if thats true or not, but I haven't put the seatbelt around myself and a bub since...thankfully I don't catch cabs often either, I usually walk.

I'd love to know the rules regarding baby seats in cabs tho, coz I've never seen one with a seat, not even stashed in the boot.

[Dannielle]

Nicole75- :laughing: Nah, not NSW.

cwsmum- Quite a few have a container thing on top of the roof for the car seats.

[Trumpet]

:laughing: :laughing: Thought you'd like that !!!

[cwsmum]

Nope, never seen anything on the roof of a cab either Dannielle...or maybe I just haven't noticed coz I haven't had to catch a cab for a while.
Or it could just be that cab drivers round here don't care...

[cheezelkat]

I had to travel in a cab on the way home from the hospital when Liam was 3 days old and they told us no capsules available.

[SassyMummy]

I take DD in cabs for short trips every so often. She's 17 months.

Our trips are usually about 5 minutes long... I wouldn't want ot travel much longer. I also travel in suburban areas... they seem to be much safer and not as scary as city cabs...

We never use a carseat... Yellow Cabs is the only company in my area, and they don't provide carseats. I can bring my own, but how am I supposed to lug around a carseat at the shops? Ridiculous.

[rynosmum]

I take a carseat if required or catch public transport or just walk if I don't have my car. There is no way to safely take your child in a vehicle without a seat.

I won't risk the life of my child on my feeling that it is inappropriate to take a carseat in a taxi.

Cabs have accidents too:thumbsdown:

[Areca]

I took DD in a taxi once. He had a car seat but she may as well have been in a basket in the back seat. It was soooo unsafe. Never again. I caught the bus home that day (it's bigger than a car) and now don't bother if I don't have a car.

[OneBabyBoy]

I was goimng to say can you check out if there is any way you can get public transport instead?
If not you can get a hire car with car seat from a city car hire depot and drop it off at the airport. Couple of hours hire shouldn't be more than $40 so not much more than a cab and worth it to ensure the saftey of your child IMO.
I was a corporate travel consultant before maternity leave and we used to do short car hire all the time for business travelers so I know it's possible.

[Seekrit]

hmm, ive never seen or heard of cabs having carseats. :o
i usually just hold DD in between my legs and have my seat belt around her

Okay. Don't do this EVER again! :eek: that's scary. Okay, what happens is when you have an accident in the cab, your weight will be pushed forward into her, and she will have the brunt of your weight, plus her weight against the seat belt - AND the extra weight that is pushed forward during a sudden stop!!

My dad's a cabby and I've asked him what the deal is... Yellow Cabs QLD... you don't have to have a car seat but some drivers can refuse passengers if it's a child without a car seat.

You're asked to sit in the back passenger side, with the belt around you and holding your UNRESTRAINED child on your lap. In the event of a crash you'll let go of the baby (he said try as you might, they end up being as heavy as cannon balls and you can't hold them) they'll hit the seat in front and fall to the ground. Scary yes... but it's much better than being crushed against you by being in the same seatbelt.