Toddler in a car

[Dopamine1979]

Some advice please:

What is the general concensus about briefly leaving your 2 year old alone secured in their car seat whilst you pop in to e.g pay for petrol?

Socially acceptable or Social services?

:)

[david_carnell]

To pay for petrol? In a locked car? Secured in their seat.

Fine.

Same for nipping into a shop for a paper, milk etc.

Probably not for your weekly supermarket shop ;-)

[Saffron]

If it's not a hot day, the car's in your view at all times, and you've taken the keys out of the ignition but locked the doors, it seems pretty reasonable to me.

[Dopamine1979]

Thanks for the replies.

[Pickle]

I do it quite often, for exactly the reasons above - paying for petrol, nipping into a shop to buy bread etc.

[Belle]

It probably depends on the child. I have a feeling if I tried this, I'd come out to find my 2 had convinced a passerby they were trapped!

[midivydale]

Belle Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> It probably depends on the child. I have a feeling

> if I tried this, I'd come out to find my 2 had

> convinced a passerby they were trapped!

Yup, me too;)

[Dopamine1979]

Belle Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> It probably depends on the child. I have a feeling

> if I tried this, I'd come out to find my 2 had

> convinced a passerby they were trapped!

:)

Thankfully Mini Dopamine isn't that cunning yet.

[Pickle]

I leave mine listening to "Barbie Girl". That's probably more of a reason to call social services than leaving them in the car to start with :)

[Growlybear]

I never, ever left my daughter in the car alone. I met someone several years ago whose car was stolen, with a baby asleep in the back, while she had left the locked car for a couple of minutes to pay for petrol. Thankfully the car was abandoned very quickly and the baby was safe, but it takes only seconds for a car to be stolen. Your children are the most important things in your life, so why take even a minute risk with their safety?

[Pickle]

That's a scary situation.

If I had a car that could easily be broken into or hot wired I would think twice. As it is, it's a very modern car, with alarm, immobilisers and smart key entry. Virtually impossible to get into and would make a lot of noise if someone tried.

[SBot]

Pay at pump!!

[Mrs TP]

Not one child on their own but multiple kids terrifying prospect for most would be car jackers.

[snowboarder]

I do leave mine only to pay for petrol if I have to - pay at pump is almost always not working for some reason! - but I do almost anything to avoid getting petrol when with them if I can. What I can't work out how to do is lock the car without putting the alarm on - so they have to sit like statues or the alarm goes off when they move!!

[Pickle]

If I was a car jacker, I would probably avoid the car with three kids in the back singing along to Aqua.

Snowboarder, our alarm only goes off if the car is interfered with from the outside, so it's fine to leave dancing kids in the back without it going off.

[Tallulahdoesthehula]

there is a button you can press to deactivate the internal alarm whilst leaving the external one working.

[BellendenBear]

Where is this button?! Our alarm goes off too if I lock the door with the kids inside.

[ClareC]

Ours has a button near the floor of the drivers door where the seatbelt mount is ie seatbelt edge of drivers door rather than pedal edge.

[Yak]

I quite like the idea of making the kids sit stock still.

But then I am bad mummy..

[redjam]

I was sniggering at the thought of a carjacker bolting off in fear when seeing three kids pop up in the back seat singing Aqua.

And now I'm sniggering at the thought of telling the kids they have to sit like statues while you leave them even though they don't need to.

This place makes me laugh sometimes.

[Saffron]

http://www.salon.com/2014/06/03/the_day_i_left_my_son_in_the_car/?source=huffpo

[Mellors]

I leave mine all three of mine bickering in the back whilst I get petrol/pop in for milk. I am rather hoping somebody is foolish enough to takes them ;)

[Rightsaidfred]

I think it's ok but then read this article.

I'd like to think this won't happen here in the UK. It's a bit long but quite interesting.

http://www.salon.com/2014/06/03/the_day_i_left_my_son_in_the_car/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

[Rightsaidfred]

Oops cross posted same article. Good read tho.

[Saffron]

Agreed, and it shows how important keeping very young children in your line of sight can be, particularly for the legal implications.

Does anyone know if there are age-related restrictions in the UK?