We have some facts about car seats that you may not know in today's Safe Family report. Josh Stevenson has more.

These days buying secondhand products and saving a few bucks sounds like a good idea, but don't sell you or your kids short.

Child safety seats save the lives of thousands of children every year. While new car safety seats can be expensive, a used safety seat can be dangerous.

“You want to stay away from and what most people don’t know is that you want to stay away from a used car seat. Your average car seat has a lifespan of about five years. That’s because the sun is going to start deteriorating those straps" Sgt. Bruce Dawsey of the Sherman Police Department says.

The straps on a car seat are designed to stretch in a collision, and after a car seat has been in an accident it no longer has the elasticity to work properly.

“When you buy a used car seat from a garage sale or Goodwill, you may not know if that car seat has ever been in a crash."

So remember -- new baby, new car seat, and that means in grandma's car, too.

Always follow the manufacturer’s directions when you install your child’s safety seat, and if you need a hand, most police and fire departments can help you make sure your child is as safe as possible.