An airbag is supposed to save your life in the split second before impact. A manufacturing flaw can turn that same device into a source of metal shrapnel or an explosion nobody saw coming, and the two outcomes look nothing alike from inside the vehicle.
If your airbag ruptured, fired fragments into the cabin, or deployed with no crash at all, the manufacturer may be legally responsible for what happened to you, not the person behind the wheel. That distinction matters because it changes who you can hold accountable and how much your claim is actually worth. The Law Offices of Sean M. Cleary can help you find out which company that responsibility belongs to.
Explosion Versus Normal Deployment
Recognizing which scenario you experienced determines whether you have a genuine product liability claim, and the two look nothing alike once you know what to check. Two distinct failure types account for most defective airbag cases on the road today.
- Inflator rupture: the metal canister housing the propellant shatters and fires metal and plastic fragments into the cabin, usually traced back to degraded ammonium nitrate propellant or a defect in the canister itself
- Spontaneous deployment: the airbag inflates suddenly during normal driving with no impact at all, typically caused by a faulty crash sensor, a short circuit, or a defective control module
Injuries Caused by Defective Airbags
An inflator rupture or an unprompted deployment can cause trauma far beyond what a properly functioning airbag would ever produce. The forces involved, sometimes over 100 to 200 miles per hour, leave lasting damage well past the moment of impact.
- Facial fractures, deep lacerations, and permanent scarring from flying metal or plastic fragments
- Shrapnel wounds to the neck, chest, or eyes
- Chemical or thermal burns from the propellant itself
- Traumatic brain injuries, eardrum ruptures, and lasting tinnitus from the acoustic shockwave of the deployment
Steps to Protect a Product Liability Claim
Proving a manufacturing defect caused your injury depends on evidence that can disappear within days if nobody steps in to preserve it.
- Preserve the vehicle: never let an insurer salvage, crush, or repair the car, since the airbag assembly, the metal canister, and the sensor logs are the evidence a claim depends on
- Preserve physical evidence: keep any clothing or items marked by propellant residue or torn by shrapnel
- Check for open recalls: the NHTSA recall database and VIN lookup tool are free to use
- Avoid a quick settlement: insurers often push a fast payout before the full extent of facial surgery, hearing loss, or scarring has even been documented
How The Law Offices of Sean M. Cleary Can Help with Your Defective Airbag Claim
Our team works with forensic engineers who examine the ruptured inflator, cross-reference the factory production lot, and connect your specific injury to a documented defect. We pursue the manufacturer directly rather than accepting an early settlement that undervalues facial surgery, hearing loss, or long-term scarring. That process holds automakers accountable for a defect they knew about long before your airbag ever deployed. Contact us for a free case evaluation of your defective airbag claim.