When can airbags be a threat to passengers?

When you think about how airbags in vehicles are supposed to work, the overriding notion is that they are supposed to save lives. They are supposed to cushion the impact between a driver (primarily their head) and the steering column and the dashboard. The same could be said about airbags that protect passengers as well.

However, while many airbags save lives, there is a growing problem that is being discovered about the canisters that house them. Essentially they could disintegrate under the pressure of inflating during the impact of an accident, and could send metal shards into the occupants of a car, therefore creating serious lacerations and other injuries.

According to a warning issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly five million vehicles across the United States could be affected. The airbags, which were manufactured by Takata Corporation, have been included in Hondas, Toyotas, Nissans and BMWs sold over the past few years. However, new information has surfaced suggesting that more than seven million cars could have faulty airbags.

Because of this, millions of cars are being recalled so that potentially defective airbags can be replaced before they harm someone. Unfortunately, a few motorists have not been so lucky. For those how have been injured, they could bring a claim against the automaker as well as the airbag manufacturer for putting a defective product on the market, and for failing to take reasonable steps to correct the defect.

It remains to be seen how many lawsuits will originate due to this problem.