Defects create a hazard for Iowa drivers

According to Bruce Anderson, president of the Iowa Automobile Dealers Association, it is possible that more than 1 percent of the U.S. vehicle fleet housed in Iowa contains the defective Takata airbags – that represents more than 340,000 cars and trucks on our roadways.

Anderson recently discussed the airbag recalls with The Gazette.

Since 2014 there have been on-going international recalls for vehicle airbags manufactured by Takata Corporation.  The defective airbags have been installed on cars and trucks with model years from 2002 through 2015, made by BMW, Ford, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Jeep/Chrysler and Mazda – and a dozen other manufacturers.

Some reports indicate than one in seven vehicles in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids may be impacted – the recall includes at least 37 million cars and trucks in the U.S. and 65 to 70 million airbags that have been installed in other types of vehicles in the U.S. and abroad.

The airbags have been found to have specific defects that cause them to explode on impact, spewing hard plastic and metal shards throughout the vehicle.

Consumer Reports investigative articles indicate that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has called the airbag recall disastrous and “the largest and most complex safety recall in history.”

Next Steps

If you have been involved in an accident, even if it is minor, and your airbag deployed injuring you or a loved one, please call Lenahan Law immediately to schedule a free case evaluation – and please make sure to save all evidence of the airbag failure.

Do not allow any pieces of the airbag to be discarded, and do not allow the insurance company to take possession of your car.  Use video and pictures to document the condition of the airbag and all associated damage.

Safety devices

Airbags were originally designed and stored in the steering wheel, as a way to protect drivers.  As airbag technology improved, they were included in the side of the car for both the driver and passenger. Even when they deploy as designed, airbags have been known to cause whiplash, brain injuries and neck and spine injuries.

Serious or severe airbag malfunctions and injuries were relatively rare – until the Takata defects.  Possible scenarios with the defective Takata product include:

• Failure of the internal airbag components that result in untimely deployment – the airbag may explode while driving without any type of impact
• Shredding of the internal components of the airbag during deployment, causing debris to shower the inhabitants of the vehicle
• Unnecessary deployment – the airbag may deploy in a low impact fender-bender
• Failure of the airbag inflator and sensor may cause delayed deployment during a crash, or the airbag may not deploy at all, even in case of a high impact crash

Jeremy Ford lives outside of Iowa City, in Coralville.  Ford said that he has not received recall notices, but his vehicles are in the lots that are known to have defective airbags.  In his opinion, the recall is yet another example of safety stands failure, and greed on the part of Takata.

Dealers replacing defective airbags

Frank Juliano, operations manager for Billion Auto in Iowa City said that the defective airbags are a “nightmare” for everyone.  “It is an inconvenience for the customer, and given the magnitude of this, getting the product could be the toughest thing.”

The issue of replacement – the product availability and the man hours required to replace the airbags – could take years.  In the meantime, drivers and passengers are being exposed to severe, catastrophic injuries – and even death.

As of the first quarter of 2018, the death toll from these defective airbags stands at 22.  Severe injuries have been reported in the thousands.  Takata has been fined hundreds of thousands of dollars for the defect products.

At Lenahan Law, we understand that the impact of a crash can wreck you finances and your physical health.  If you are the victim of a defective airbag that has led to a car or truck crash, we will aggressively help you fight for fair compensation and a favorable settlement.

Please call 214-380-4095 to schedule your free consultation today.  To learn more about car crash injury claims, please visit https://www.dallassevereinjurylawyer.com.