It was December 22, 2015, when a Georgia man had an accident along a road in South Carolina. His airbag deployed, but due to the explosive power of a defective airbag inflator, he was peppered by shrapnel and later succumbed to his injuries. His death marks the 10th life to be taken by a defective airbag inflator produced by Takata Corp, but details of this incident are changing everything we once knew about the largest automotive recall the industry has ever seen.
Did More Vehicles Get Added To The Takata Airbag Recall?
The latest victim of the Takata airbag inflator is the first victim to be driving a vehicle other than a Honda. This time the vehicle carrying the defective airbag was a 2006 Ford Ranger, and though Ford has already said that it will no longer be using Takata airbag inflators, many of the manufacturers previous models could be affected. However, Ford isn’t the only automaker that will feel the effects of this fatality.
Are There New Automakers Included In The Recall?
In response to this latest accident, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has ordered that an extra 5 million vehicles with potentially deadly Takata airbags be recalled. The recall expansion includes manufacture that were not previously included: Mercedes-Benz, Saab, Audi, and Volkswagen. NHTSA has also demanded that Takata prove the ammonium nitrate propellant they use can be deployed safely in an airbag inflator, otherwise it will demand that the company recall every inflator that uses this propellant.
Colson Hicks Eidson partner Curt Miner is the Lead Counsel for the personal injury track of the product liability case against Takata Corp. That means you can count on our blog, Twitter and Facebook for latest news on the Takata airbag recall.
This update was brought to you by the attorneys of Colson Hicks Eidson, helping people who have been injured for over 40 years.