Philadelphia Car Accident Lawyer Blog

An earlier generation of airbag cases begs for design improvement to protect an unbelted person of an average weight of 165 lbs. These first generation airbags deployed at a single level with a force powerful enough to kill or injure a small adult or child seated in the front passenger seat. Vehicles made after 2007 contain smart airbag detection systems; however many times defects in airbag design or installation can fool a smart airbag into not deploying when it should or deploy it when it shouldn’t. Many smart airbags determine how much force to deploy based upon the weight of the passenger. Some systems utilize a sensor on the seat bottom to determine this weight and other systems use bladders filled with gel which basically tell the airbag controller not to deploy in a crash when a front seat passenger weighs less than 105 lbs.

Many times due to variations in temperature or sensor defect, a system is tricked, resulting in death or catastrophic injury to a passenger. Most of the advanced airbag technologies tailor airbag deployment to the severity of the crash and the size and posture of the vehicle occupant. However, many of the vehicles on our roadways do not have sensors identifying children and very small adults or control airbag deployment force. This means that many children and smaller sized passengers in these vehicles are at risk for catastrophic injury or death when a front airbag deploys. Of course, first generation airbags in older vehicles pose the greatest risk. A recent study indicated that children had a 14.9% chance of serious injury from an airbag deployment in a 1997 or older model year vehicle versus a 9.9% risk in a 1998 to 2001 vehicle. Later model year vehicles were not studied. Interestingly, children older than 12 and smaller adults can also be at risk of injury when a front airbag deploys due to lack of bone density and muscle mass.

We recently were involved with a case with a smaller than average occupant who sustained the loss of eyesight due to the alleged size of her body and failure to be positioned properly for safe deployment. This was an older vehicle, pre-2007, with a one size fits all approach to the technology.

If you or a loved one has been involved in an accident caused by an allegedly defective airbag, please feel free to contact one of our experienced airbag defect lawyers for a free consultation to fully evaluate and investigate your case and determine who is or may be at fault and determine the proper amount of compensation that you will be able to recover.

Chrysler has announced a recall of almost 3,210 vehicles due to the fact that the passenger side front airbag would not deploy properly. Additionally, Land Rover is recalling 4,000 of its 2010 Range Rovers because a computer problem may keep the passenger side airbag from deploying. Thirdly, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has started an investigation into the stalling problems on approximately 397,000 Toyota Corolla Matrix models. The safety agency says it began its preliminary evaluation of 2006 models based on 26 complaints about the 1.8 liter 4 cylinder engine quitting “while driving including some on highways and intersections.”

If you own or operate any of these vehicles, you should immediately have your vehicle inspected by the dealer to avoid a potential catastrophic injury or fatality. The Philadelphia car accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily are committed to consumer safety.

Philadelphia car accident lawyer and airbag defect law firm call attention to a recall notice. Mitsubishi and the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) have issued an alert regarding Mitsubishi Endeavor airbags produced between May 26 and July 28, 2009 claiming that a retainer bracket in the seat mounted airbags may not have been properly joined. Faulty welding can cause the front driver's seat and front passenger side airbags to fail to deploy properly which could result in catastrophic injury or death should a crash occur. The replacement is known to be on a case by case basis and may not be necessary at all as the recalled Endeavors will be inspected first for the quality of the welds. It is recommended by the Philadelphia airbag defect law firm of Reiff and Bily that if you own one of these vehicles, you should immediately visit the dealer and have this weld inspected to insure safe operation of your vehicle and avoid catastrophic injury or death should a car accident occur.

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, in an attempt to prevent motorists from being ejected from vehicles during rollover crashes, announced on Tuesday, December 2, 2009 that new cars and trucks will be required to have a larger and stronger side airbags. Every year over ten thousand deaths occur in vehicle rollover crashes. Electronic stability control is required to be in all new vehicles by the 2012 model year. NHTSA predicts that when all vehicles under 10,000 lbs. or less have this technology, the number of deaths from rollovers should be reduced by approximately 50%.

The Philadelphia car accident, airbag defect, and SUV rollover attorneys at Reiff and Bily salute these latest efforts by NHTSA. If you or a loved one has been involved in a car accident or rollover accident, please feel free to contact one of our experienced Philadelphia car accident and rollover attorneys for a free consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

Over the years, airbags have become a mandatory safety device in all new cars. There is no question that along with using a seat belt, many lives have been saved due to airbags. Airbags are meant to prevent the occupant's head from striking a part of the vehicle and spread the force of the impact across their body. Due to the speed of airbag deployment and the chemicals used, there is always the possibility that airbags do more harm than good. Believe it or not, airbags often do not operate properly causing serious injury and deaths that could have easily been prevented. Philadelphia product liability and car accident lawyer Jeffrey Reiff and the experienced Pennsylvania defective airbag lawyers at Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling automotive and defective airbag cases for many years.

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