Experts say it’s the sign of the times, with inflation at a 40 year high.
Some officials are urging parents not to chance their children’s safety after health officials have encountered dozens of counterfeit car seats.
Car seats are one of the more expensive items young children need, and they are required to transport your baby no matter what.
The warning stems from a Florida hospital, but Mott Children’s Hospital says they’ve also seen a few counterfeit seats recently and other hospitals across the state have too.
Since January, officials at Orlando Health said they’d identified 27 counterfeit car seats and 11 foreign seats, all discovered as they helped parents strap in their new baby leaving the hospital.
Officials say that knockoffs may not have lower anchor attachments or a chest clip.
Safety experts say many of these car seats are bought online through third-party vendors, and if the price seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Some of the most commonly knock-off brands are Doona and Britax.
Those are two of the most expensive brands so if the price is lower than you’ve seen at other retailers -- that’s a red flag that it may be a counterfeit.
If you discover you’ve purchased a counterfeit car seat, you are encouraged to report it at stopfakes.gov.
There are also community organizations and hospital programs that work to make sure every family can find a free or reduced cost car seat.
If you are looking for a car seat, check out the links below: