Who Is Liable for Defective Airbags: The Manufacturer, Automaker, or Both?

The lifesaving airbags within your steering wheel and dashboard can turn deadly when they’re defective. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), an auto parts company named Takata manufactured defective airbags that have injured at least 400 people and killed as many as 28 people since 2004. Legal and regulatory agencies address these situations through product recalls and product liability lawsuits to compensate victims for their injuries. If you’ve been injured by a defective airbag, an attorney can help you to get the compensation you deserve.

The personal injury attorneys at Carabin Shaw understand the complex litigation required for airbag cases that may involve international companies and federal courts. We offer our services on a contingency-fee basis, so you can get the legal help you need without any additional financial hardship. Call our toll-free number at 1-800-862-1260 to speak with a member of our English- or Spanish-speaking staff, available 24/7 to address your legal needs.

Despite the potential for defects, airbags have had a net positive effect on motor vehicle safety, saving over 50,000 lives in the past 30 years, according to the NHTSA. Airbags typically malfunction in the following ways:

• Failing to deploy
• Incorrect timing of deployment
• Partial deployment
• Spontaneous deployment
• Rupture/explosion

When victims suffer injuries as a result of these defects, the party liable for the airbag’s malfunction may have to pay airbag injury compensation to the victim.

When you visit your lawyer to review your personal injury case, one of the things you’ll need to do is evaluate your damages, so you can claim a monetary amount that covers your economic and noneconomic losses. This includes medical bills, but also emotional damage for long-term scarring or pain and suffering from neck injuries. An effective legal professional will help you identify and account for all your losses. Read our law firm’s client reviews to find out how the team at Carabin Shaw explores your claim with attention and compassion, to ensure you get a fair and full settlement.

When a defective airbag lawyer begins a lawsuit, they’ll focus on product liability. This is the responsibility of product designers, manufacturers, marketers, and sellers to deliver a functioning product to the consumer. There is no specific federal product liability law, but the federal courts often try airbag cases.

State product liability laws differ across the nation. They specify things like when manufacturing parties are liable versus when a seller could be liable for injuries in an auto defect lawsuit. Defective airbag lawsuits are complex because the defendants are often out-of-state or international corporations, and your lawyer must ensure that the court applies the law fairly to your case with respect to your state laws.

Airbags are standard in most vehicles, so when there is a manufacturing defect, the impact is widespread. There may be multiple victims from different states claiming similar injuries from the same party. An attorney must understand multi-district litigation (MDL) to handle the claim in federal court.

Multi-district litigation is complex because it attempts to achieve global results at a federal level for all parties while applying the state laws applicable to each individual. An airbag recall attorney will ensure that you protect your rights from a federal and state standpoint.

Hiring an attorney for an airbag case might seem difficult once you find out that you’ll file your case in federal court, but the legal team at Carabin Shaw supports you every step of the way. Schedule your free consultation today, and get the justice you deserve after an airbag injury.

For more information:

• NHTSA - Takata Recall Spotlight
• NHTSA - Air Bags
• Legal Information Institute