5 wrongful deaths from flying airbag “shrapnel” and dozens of serious injuries prompted the recall of over 14 million vehicles with Takata airbags. The current recalls are limited to passenger side airbags in certain vehicles in Florida, California, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands and Guam. Takata airbags have been used in vehicles manufactured by BMW, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru, and Toyota.
Call for National Takata Airbag Recall
Our lawyers are joining U.S. legislators and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in calling for a nationwide recall of Takata airbags, instead of the geographically limited one now in force. We believe U.S. car makers and Takata should put consumer safety first and make sure every airbag that has any chance of exploding shrapnel in an accident should be part of the recall. Right now vehicles in most states are not part of the recall.
What is Wrong with These Airbags?
Tests are still being done on the Takata passenger-side airbags to determine the cause of the explosions, but it appears that the ammonium nitrate propellant used to inflate the airbags becomes unstable when exposed to high levels of humidity. When this happens, the ammonium nitrate can explode and blow bits of metal at the passenger.
We believe driver’s side airbags should also be recalled unless Takata can prove that a different ammonium nitrate propellant that is not defective was used for those airbags. Consumer safety should always come first. It should not be necessary for people to die before a potentially defective product is recalled.
NATSA is concerned enough about Takata driver’s side airbags to call for a nationwide recall:
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced it is calling for a national recall of vehicles with certain driver’s side frontal air bags made by Takata. This decision is based on the agency’s evaluation of a recent driver’s side air bag failure in a vehicle outside the current regional recall area and its relationship to five previous driver’s side air bag ruptures, all of which are covered by existing regional recalls.
What happened is NHTSA got a report of a driver’s side airbag exploding in North Carolina that blew shrapnel at the driver (New York Times). The accident happened in a 2007 Ford Mustang that was part of the current recall, but not in North Carolina, and not for the driver’s side airbag.
Takata Resists National Recall
Takata is resisting a national recall, and this matters because NHTSA can’t force a recall without legal action, and that process is long and expensive. This situation points to the need for changes in the law that give NHTSA the authority to recall products when there are reports of serious injuries and deaths. Certainly a formula could be found that would provide for agency-mandated recalls but not give NHTSA unbridled authority to recall products.
Takata may be fighting for its financial life, but it is a company, not a human being. Consumer safety has to be top priority. This may be a lesson in fixing a problem before it is too late.
Takata’s foot-dragging efforts include:
- Disclaiming any finding of a safety-related defect;
- Failing to submit the Part 573 Safety Recall Report regarding driver’s side air bag inflator ruptures;
- Failing to provide information regarding the possible causes of the driver’s side air bag ruptures outside the current recall’s geographic regions.
NHTSA is having none of it, and issued a General Order to Takata and all ten of the manufacturers that use Takata air bag inflators (BMW, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru, and Toyota) requiring each manufacturer to file, under oath, a detailed report and produce all related documents about completed, ongoing or planned testing of Takata inflators outside the current regional recall areas.
Ultimatum
NHTSA has given Takata until tomorrow, Tuesday, December 2, to declare its driver-side airbags faulty and begin the process of recalling air bags on a national level. Our guess is the auto makers will not agree to it, even if Takata gives in. The recall could cost manufacturers billions.
We will see if tomorrow Takata complies. If not, NHTSA could slap a fine of $7,000 per day of delay per vehicle on the company. The cap for the fine is $35 million.