"Perfect Family On Board"

W

wally

Registered User
Messages
61
Okay. Trying to stay calm on this....

Whatever about 'Baby on Board' Stickers in cars and 'Princess on Board' and the more ridiculous stickers which have evolved since this novelty began - one day last week, I literally had to squint to see if what I thought I saw was actually real - the car in front had a sticker which read 'Perfect Family On Board' and the picture was of an adult male, adult female and two children, which consisted of a boy and a girl.

I actually think this is bordering on offensive. What kind of sado actually buys this sticker? I take offence to it from the point of view as someone dealing with infertility and the ongoing truama of possibly never being able to have children as IVF is out of our price range and such a gamble, I do realise I may be over sensitive to this kind of sticker, but I just thought what about someone who has just had a baby which may be handicapped or that type of thing, or even someone having their second child who had been hoping to have a boy if they already had a girl or the other way around, and to land behind this absolute sap with their 'perfect family on board' sticker.

As someone dealing with infertility (and I know alot of people have a lot of much worse problems in life, I am not looking for sympathy), it is constant stuff to get through - most people don't have problems conceiving and are totally insenstivie and insulting without even realising it, but this to me is a whole new level.

No doubt some of you may respond to say I need to get over this type of thing, and stop expecting the world to sympathise with my infertility issues - but I just think this is totally unnecessary and absolutely insensitive to people who may have families or children who are not the 'perfect family'.

thanks..............
 
Somehow I think it was ironic. Did you happen to catch a glimpse of the occupants?
 
wally said:
Whatever about 'Baby on Board' Stickers in cars and 'Princess on Board' and the more ridiculous stickers which have evolved since this novelty began
Click to expand...

Just a bit of an aside - on the "Baby on Board" stickers. Im always surprised that they seem to generate such negative reactions. They do, as far as I understand, serve a real purpose.

I believe you are meant to have one if you have a baby in a car seat facing backwards (which is usually the case until the baby is 11kg). If you hit the back of the car in front of you, you are thrown forward and could suffer whiplash where your neck is hurt by the force of the impact. A baby sits in a carseat which is positioned backwards in the backseat so it is pushed into the seat in that case and its neck (which is very delicate) is protected.

However if a car goes into the back of you, you are pushed back into your seat but your baby lunges forward with impact as he/she is sitting backwards - it the reverse of the above scenario and the baby could suffer whiplash or worse. The "baby on board" sticker notifies the driver behind you that there is a baby on board and to take extra care so as not to go into the back of the car in front of them and cause a "forward impact" effect on the baby in the car seat. This is why the sticker should always be on the back window.

I am open to correction but this is my understanding of the - baby on board - sticker.

As to your post - I agree the "perfect family on board" sticker is unthoughtful and insensitve. Good luck with the fertility treatment I really hope there is a baby in your future.

cas.
 
casiopea said:
Just a bit of an aside - on the "Baby on Board" stickers. Im always surprised that they seem to generate such negative reactions. They do, as far as I understand, serve a real purpose.

I believe you are meant to have one if you have a baby in a car seat facing backwards (which is usually the case until the baby is 11kg).
Click to expand...


Well, if that's correct then the sticker should be taken down when the baby is not in the car.
 
Hoagy said:
Well, if that's correct then the sticker should be taken down when the baby is not in the car.
Click to expand...

Yes true, if its possible to remove them, but:
1) depending on the car - a baby carseat (for example the maxicosi) is not always visible to another driver (especially the car behind).
2) a frazzled mammy has enough stress trying to strap in a crying baby into a car seat (my baby hates her car seat), strap the seat down in the car, get the buggy disassembled and all the components in the back, calm the baby down, without having to remember to put up and down car stickers everytime.
3) many cars display learner plates which are rarely removed when the learner themselves is not driving.
 
Last edited:
That doesn't sound right.

Most of us drive with caution all the time, a sticker won't make you drive more carefully,they are nonsense.
 
DavyJones said:
That doesn't sound right.
Click to expand...

When I left hospital here in Switzerland with my newborn baby I was given a baby-bag which contained various bits and bobs (nappy rash creams, changing mat etc) including a "baby on board" sticker with that reason. The sign is similiar to a "warning" sign as oppose to a cutie sign - iykwim? Its not a "princess on board" type sign its diamond shaped and is white with a red border - like a warning street sign.

DavyJones said:
Most of us drive with caution all the time, a sticker won't make you drive more carefully,they are nonsense.
Click to expand...

Most of us do - but the very definition of "most" means not all of us do. The (b-o-b) signs, I assume, are an extra warning. Many signs and notifications could be dismissed as superfluous but are put up as a precautionary measure.
 
By the way, Im not trying to advocate the use of them - I just dont understand why they generate such negative reactions when people rarely pass comment on the litany of other ridiculous signs displaying in peoples cars (which can be very distracting).
 
casiopea said:
The "baby on board" sticker notifies the driver behind you that there is a baby on board and to take extra care so as not to go into the back of the car in front of them
Click to expand...

I think they are ridiculous, is the idea not to avoid hitting cars anyway??
Like I regularly drive into the back of other cars but because I see the sticker, gosh i better not. Load of rubbish in my opinion.
 
Once a car is in motion on a public road it is fair to assume that there is at least one "person" on board and due care, as required by the rules of the road should be observed by all other drivers. That person is of equal value as a person whether aged 1 or 101 and a sign to indicate the status of that individual is, to me, irrelevant.
 
Ciaraella said:
I think they are ridiculous, is the idea not to avoid hitting cars anyway??
Click to expand...

The idea is to take extra precaution Ciaraella.

I didnt mean to drag this thread off topic from Wallys initial complaint which is a valid one. Sorry Wally.
 
I think you're being over-sensitive Wally.

I loathe all car stickers but is there really any difference between your example and say, "World's best lover" "Genius at the wheel" or something?
 
'Perfect family on Board', must be a bit of a joke really. I suppose it would be like 'super model' or 'super stud' on board.... Jeez I'd feel like a right ejitt driving around with that on the back of my car. It's bad enough when the kids are all talking at you at once and the traffic is murder....
 
Graham_07 said:
Once a car is in motion on a public road it is fair to assume that there is at least one "person" on board and due care, as required by the rules of the road should be observed by all other drivers. That person is of equal value as a person whether aged 1 or 101 and a sign to indicate the status of that individual is, to me, irrelevant.
Click to expand...

I quite agree! It doesn't matter what age the occupants are, all life is precious. I always took the B-O-B stickers to be cutsie and a sort of "drive carefully 'cos my little darling is in the car" sort of thing.

The perfect family one might have just caused me to smile wryly, surely it's got to be tongue in cheek. Yet it conjours up images of Homer Simpson's neighbours, all rosey cheeked youngsters and happy parents trucking along singing and playing "I spy".

Maybe a tad sensitive, OP but I can see where you're coming from having been in your situation. Good luck, and I wish you a happy outcome......and don't mind what we think when you put your own B-OB on the car. :)
 
casiopea said:
The idea is to take extra precaution Ciaraella.

I didnt mean to drag this thread off topic from Wallys initial complaint which is a valid one. Sorry Wally.
Click to expand...


I suppose i'm biased in that i think car stickers, including the one the OP describes are a ridiculous distraction and I think very irritating but in terms of the 'Baby on Board' stickers by the same logic should we not have 'Elder on Board', 'Toddler on Board' etc. As in for toddler on board we should be more careful then if there was no child but less careful as we would if there's a baby on board?? Bottom line is people should drive carefully all the time and the age, number of people etc in other cars should have nothing to do with it.
 
Ciaraella said:
I suppose i'm biased in that i think car stickers, including the one the OP describes are a ridiculous distraction and I think very irritating but in terms of the 'Baby on Board' stickers by the same logic should we not have 'Elder on Board', 'Toddler on Board' etc. As in for toddler on board we should be more careful then if there was no child but less careful as we would if there's a baby on board??
Click to expand...

The reason though why its "baby on board" and not "toddler on board" (for example) is that a toddler sits forward in their baby/toddler car seat - its only up to 11kg that a person sits facing backwards. Hence only a baby. The sign (according to the package we were given) informs the driver behind that an impact to the back bumper has the effect of a forward impact crash to that baby in the car seat facing backwards. If you have a baby in a forward facing car seat (some parents move their babies to a forward facing carseat from about 7kg though are recommended to wait till 9 - 11kg) you should not display the sticker.

Graham_07 said:
Once a car is in motion on a public road it is fair to assume that there is at least one "person" on board and due care, as required by the rules of the road should be observed by all other drivers. That person is of equal value as a person whether aged 1 or 101 and a sign to indicate the status of that individual is, to me, irrelevant.
Click to expand...

Ciaraella said:
Bottom line is people should drive carefully all the time and the age, number of people etc in other cars should have nothing to do with it.
Click to expand...

Agreed.
 
casiopea said:
I am open to correction but this is my understanding of the - baby on board - sticker.
Click to expand...


I thought it was for a completely different reason...

If your car is involved in a bad accident it notifys the emergency services that you were carrying a baby. It was a response to a few instances where the fact that a baby/child was in the backseat was overlooked due to state of the car wreck.

I don't buy into the notion that I should drive more carefully behind a car with one of those stickers. I drive with due care at all times!
 
wally said:
No doubt some of you may respond to say I need to get over this type of thing, and stop expecting the world to sympathise with my infertility issues.
Click to expand...
You need to get over this type of thing.
casiopea said:
Just a bit of an aside - on the "Baby on Board" stickers. Im always surprised that they seem to generate such negative reactions. They do, as far as I understand, serve a real purpose.
Click to expand...
Indeed. They, along with Man Utd and 98 stickers amongst others, serve the purpose of restricting the view through the rear window.
casiopea said:
I believe you are meant to have one if you have a baby in a car seat facing backwards. .
Click to expand...
That's crazy talk.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top