EVENFLO STATEMENT RESPONDING TO INSTITUTE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY

Evenflo’s own extensive fit studies are conducted with real children (not test dummies) in a variety of vehicles and have shown that when our instructions are followed, the lap and shoulder belts will provide the appropriate fit and protection for children of a variety of sizes.  In addition to our own fit studies, we subject our seats to dynamic testing at forces well beyond the federal standards in order to assess how each will actually perform in an accident.

 

While commendable, the IIHS’s study appears to have adopted a mostly generic installation method rather than following the specific product instructions and utilizing the full array of adjustment options available to the user.  Importantly, and without exception, our real world results support our fit and dynamic test results.  In fact, Evenflo has sold more than 4,000,000 units of the booster seat models assessed in the IIHS study and we are not aware of a single incident in which a child was injured as a result of an improper fit. Although it was not evaluated in this study, our most popular booster seat with nearly 4,500,000 sold, the Big Kid, shares a similarly successful test and real world experience profile. 

 

At Evenflo, safety is our top priority and our foremost responsibility.  We appreciate and share the IIHS’s efforts to educate parents on the importance of the correct installation and proper use of booster seats.  However, we strongly disagree with their decision to “not recommend” the Evenflo booster seat models involved in the study.  Parents who own these models and have questions about proper installation and fit should contact our customer service line at 1-800-233-5921 between 8AM and 5PM EST.

 

Evenflo urges consumers to read and follow all product instructions prior to use.