Miami Defective Airbag Lawyer: Sean M. Cleary

Injuries Following The Deployment of Defective Airbags in Miami

Attention! The only airbag cases we can take are either shrapnel cases - where the airbag goes off and shoots out metal or other particles into the person - with severe injuries or if the airbag deploys when it shouldn’t and severe injuries occur - inadvertent deployment cases.

Why Do Airbags Fail to Work Properly?

As injuries caused by airbags have increased in the past years, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration required car manufacturers to use smart airbag modules, specially designed to reduce airbag-caused injuries and deaths, which are adapted to a variety of factors such as occupant sizes and positions, as well as different vehicle speeds and crash angles. However, airbag defects are still responsible for unpleasant or even tragic incidents even after the implementation of these standards.

Some of the most common examples of defective airbags in a car accident include:

• Deployment with too much force, causing serious injuries
• Deployment occurring too slowly, resulting in more severe injuries
• Deployment at the wrong angle
• Unnecessary deployment in the case of a minor accident
• Lack of deployment when necessary
• Explosion at the time of deployment

Even though airbags save lives and reduce injuries, they can also cause hidden cardiac and pulmonary injuries, especially if the driver or passenger is not wearing a seatbelt or if they are involved in low-speed crashes.

The most frequent airbag injuries followed by a car accident are:

• Airbag burns
• Broken arms
• Broken bones in the chest
• Broken bones in the face
• Permanent facial scarring
• Traumatic brain injury
• Hearing loss
• Temporary or permanent blindness
• Neck and back injuries
• Internal injuries
• Heart muscle rupture
• Asthma attacks, coughing, and throat irritations
• Airbag dermatitis
• Fetal injury or puncture to the placenta
• Decapitation

Defective Airbags Recalls

Airbag issues may be caused by a mistake, which occurred during the manufacturing process, a design flaw, a problem with the way in which the manufacturer installed the airbag, or the failure of the manufacturer to provide adequate operating instructions or warnings in the vehicle’s manual concerning the airbag.

The latest car models which recalled airbags due to various defects include, but are not limited to:

• American Honda Motor Co. recalled over 600 Honda CR-Vs model years 2007-2011 which have had the passenger front airbag replaced.
• BMW of North America recalled 2,100 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi, 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi and 550i models year 2006 vehicles equipped with the Sport Seat option and 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi and 550i models year 2006 vehicles with standard seats.
• Chrysler recalled 209,000 Dodge Grand Caravans models years 2011-2012.
• Ford Motor Company recalled 27,000 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX models years 2016-2017 vehicles and Lincoln Continental 2017 vehicles.
• General Motors recalled 40,000 Buick Lacrosse and Chevrolet Spark EV, Caprice PPV and SS models years 2014-2016 vehicles, Buick Encore and Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 models years 2014-2017 vehicles, Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Trax, Suburban and Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL models years 2015-2016 vehicles, and GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500 models years 2015-2017 vehicles.
• Hyundai Motor Company recalled 110 Hyundai Elantras model year 2017 manufactured April 15, 2016, to September 13, 2016, and Sonatas manufactured May 27, 2016, to September 16, 2016.
• Nissan North America recalled 509 Versas and Versa Notes models year 2017.
• Volkswagen Group of America recalled 17,600 Audi A7s models years 2015-2017.
• Volvo Car USA recalled 377 S60 and S60 Cross Country, V60 and V60 Cross Country, and XC60 models year 2017 vehicles manufactured August 16, 2016, through October 21, 2016.

Attention! Takata went bankrupt. We do not take Takata airbag cases anymore.

Who Is Responsible for a Defective Airbag Injury?

According to Florida law, all parties within the chain of distribution for airbags can be legally responsible for injuries from a faulty product, which includes:

• The manufacturer of the airbag
• The manufacturer of parts of the airbag
• The manufacturer of the vehicle in which the airbag was installed
• A party that assembled or installed the airbag or the related parts
• A company which distributed cars with the airbag to local dealerships
• The dealership which sold you your car

How Can The Law Offices of Sean M. Cleary Help You in a Defective Airbag Case?

However, many of our clients reported that their airbags deployed when driving at a low speed or when no accident was even occurring. They could have been driving on a highway or could have been sitting in a parking lot.

Therefore, if you find yourself in such a situation, please contact us as soon as possible, as investigating a defective airbag case takes time. We will strive to recover the financial compensation you deserve for your physical and emotional injuries and hold the liable party responsible for their negligence in manufacturing or installing the defective product. It is also important to know that we work on a contingency fee, which means you do not have to pay our attorney anything unless he obtains compensation for you.