Law & Society

Since its invention in 1952 as safety cushion for automotive use, airbags have evolved into a mandatory vehicle safety device with federally imposed safety standards. In case of collisions or accidents, airbags were designed to deploy to prevent vehicle occupants from getting seriously injured. Since its invention in 1952 as safety cushion for automotive use, airbags have evolved into a mandatory vehicle safety device with federally imposed safety standards. In case of collisions or accidents, airbags were designed to deploy to prevent vehicle occupants from getting seriously injured.

To date, while airbags have certainly proven to be effective -- the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has pegged that it has saved 28,000 lives since Jan. 1, 2009, airbag accidents can also cause injuries.

Inadvertent airbag deployment, failure to deploy during crashes, and explosive airbags can cause injury or death instead of avoiding it. Further, the NHTSA has also discovered that aftermarket equipment such as laptop computers or mini-TVs that are mounted to the panel in front of the airbag deployment site can turn into projectiles and cause moderate or serious injury.
Most airbag accident injuries include the following:

• Skin abrasion
• Hearing damage (from extremely loud deployment explosion)
• Head injuries
• Eye damage
• Broken nose
• Broken fingers
• Broken arms and hands
• Broken ribs
• Facial lacerations

Also, since airbags are inflated using hot gas, these may cause thermal burns upon skin contact. Most airbag injury burns are deep-dermal or second degree burns that are often located on the occupant’s arms, face, and chest.

Further, airbag accident injuries have proven to be fatal, especially for children and short and elderly persons. From 1990-2008, more than 290 deaths were caused by frontal airbags more than 90 percent of whom were children and infants, because they were unbelted or had their heads close to the deploying airbag.

Side airbags also had their fair share of injuries as the NHTSA has reported that from 1995-2008, four people were seriously injured by it. One was an elderly male driver suffered multiple rib fractures, and 2 middle-age female drivers who suffered injuries to the spleen and ribs. An unrestrained 3-year old sitting in the front seat also reportedly suffered minor facial skin lacerations from the side airbag cover.

To prevent airbag injuries, here are some safety tips to take note of:

• Drivers should sit with their chests at least 10 inches away from the center of the steering wheel to avoid being too close to the airbag in case it deploys.
• Pregnant women should avoid driving as much as possible. If ever, a combination of properly positioned safety belts and air bags would offer the best protection.
• Infants and children in rear-facing safety seats should never sit in front to avoid putting their heads too close to the frontal airbags. Proper belting and positioning of your child is important to keeping him safe.
• Children should avoid leaning against door areas where the airbag is stored because the force of its deployment can be harmful. Children should not be allowed to lean against a door or lie down with the heads near the door or the sides.

Should all these reminders fail and you or a loved one sustained airbag accident injuries, it is likely that there is a defect that may have caused your car’s airbags to be more harmful than helpful. Consult with a car accident attorney to find out possible remedies to your injuries.