Airbag Injury Lawyer

Name: Airbag Injuries
Brand: McMath Woods P.A.
Rating: 4.5 (42 reviews)

If you’ve been hurt by a defective airbag, an airbag injury lawyer from McMath Woods can help you with your claim.

Airbag Failures: Seeking Justice for Defective Auto Parts

Technology advancements give cars more safety features to protect you in the event of an accident. One of the vital safety components is the airbag. You may depend on this to stop an impact from propelling you forward and causing harm. But when airbags don’t work, you can sustain major injuries. Auto part manufacturers are supposed to ensure their products are safe to use. When they are negligent or cut corners, the results can be devastating. Issues with the materials used to make the airbag or its design could do more than result in serious injuries—there could also be instances of wrongful death. McMath Woods will look out for your best interests and fight for your rights no matter what.

How Can Defective Airbags Harm People?

Airbags have to respond to specific cues from the car to work. The main elements of an airbag are the bag, accelerometer, circuit, heating element, and charge. When the accelerometer detects that your car has quickly changed speed—usually from hitting another vehicle, stationary object, or animal—it sets off the circuit, sending a current to the heating element. The charge is ignited, and the airbag inflates. A careless manufacturer could release an airbag that has a problem with any of these elements. There are a few ways that airbags can fail to do their job during the occurrence of a car accident:

Failure to Deploy. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that airbags are supposed to deploy in a moderate to severe crash or a collision equivalent to hitting a fixed object at 8 to 14 mph or higher. When they don’t, the driver isn’t protected from the force of the crash. They could slam their head against the steering wheel, and if their windshield breaks, they’re vulnerable to shards of glass.
Deploy Without Impact. It’s common for roads to have small bumps or potholes. A defective airbag could deploy when driving over something that doesn’t cause a lot of impact.
Airbag Leak. The airbag could leak the chemicals that are inside of it, which can be dangerous.

No matter what issue caused your injury, your airbag injury lawyer will investigate your case and find out what went wrong and how it harmed you. We’ll do everything to gather evidence to support your case.

Airbag Injuries

Defective airbags can cause severe injuries whether they do or do not deploy. When they don’t deploy, the people in the car lack protection in a crash; however, incorrect deployment can also hurt the driver and passengers.

Adults

While airbags are made for adults, this doesn’t mean that every time they go off, the adult is automatically safe. Airbags that deploy when they aren’t supposed to or are late can end up causing more damage. The following are possible injuries from a defective airbag:

Facial Injuries. When a faulty airbag deploys, your eyes, nose, and teeth are in danger of injury. Permanent blindness, facial fractures, and damage to your mouth may occur. There’s also a risk of burning and scarring.
Neck Injuries. Whiplash is a common injury from car crashes but can also happen when an airbag is triggered for no reason.
Chest injuries. Injuries that occur in the chest area may include soft tissue damage or broken bones.
Back Injuries. The airbag’s force can possibly cause damage to a person’s back. They may need physical therapy or other treatment to heal the injuries.
Burn Injuries. When an airbag deploys, the force can cause friction against the skin, which results in burns. There can also be a situation where the chemicals leak from the airbag and burn the skin.

Infants and Children

Infants and children often have to sit in designated car seats or areas of the car, considering their smaller size and weight. If placed in the car improperly, a deployed airbag can result in injuries or fatalities.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 35 percent of children go unrestrained. If a child is incorrectly restrained in the front seat, the passenger-side airbag puts their health at risk. The force of the inflating airbag can push the child out of a seated position, and they can come into contact with parts of the car, causing injuries or death.

When an infant is in a rear-facing child restraint, they need to be in the back seat of the car because the front passenger-side airbag is dangerous. Infants are supposed to be in rear-facing car seats until they are around a year old or weigh 20 pounds.

Takata Airbag Recall

One major airbag recall, in particular, has affected 37 million vehicles that were equipped with 50 million defective airbags—the Takata airbag recall. Upon deployment, the airbags can explode.

The vehicles that pose the most danger from the airbags are the:

2001-2002 Honda Civic
2001-2002 Honda Accord
2002 Honda CR-V
2002 Honda Odyssey
2002-2003 Acura TL
2003 Acura CL
2003 Honda Pilot
2006 Ford Ranger
2006 Mazda B-Series

The dealers of the last two cars on this list advise owners not to drive their vehicles.

It’s expected that more vehicles will be recalled in the future. The total number of faulty airbags will be around 65 to 70 million. If your airbag caused you to get in an accident, our car accident lawyers are here for you in Arkansas.

What to Do After a Faulty Airbag Injures You

When you’re injured because of a faulty airbag, you can take legal action. It’s not your fault that a manufacturer made a defective product. This may be a product liability case, and the lawyers at McMath Woods have experience dealing with these types of cases.

The burden of paying for medical care and missing work shouldn’t be all on you. We will hold the responsible party accountable for their actions. Let us help you today. Get in touch with our office, and we will schedule a free consultation for your case.