Motor vehicles employ numerous features meant to increase the safety to drivers and passengers. Seat belts, antilock brakes, and other safety tools have been implemented and improved upon over the years with the sole purpose of saving lives in the event of an automobile crash. Unfortunately, some of these safety features have potential negative effects as well. For instance, seat belts can cause bruises and lacerations if enough force is applied.
Some of the most common safety features that a motor vehicle is required to have is airbags. These devices have been improved upon and placed in additional locations in vehicles throughout the years in an effort to prevent serious injuries in a crash. The purpose of airbags is to provide force to stop a passenger’s momentum in the event of an accident. Because airbags deploy at speeds close to 200 MPH, they have been known to leave people with burns, broken bones, and other injuries. This may seem ineffective, but the alternative is for motor vehicle passengers to impact more dangerous surfaces, such as steering wheels, dashboards, and windows. The force of an airbag may be great, but the purpose is to use enough force to stop a person’s dangerous momentum in a collision.
Like every other part in a motor vehicle, airbags can become defective or faulty. Because many airbags are deployed using a vehicle’s software, imperfections in that system can prevent airbags from deploying at appropriate times in a crash. Volkswagen AG recently announced an airbag recall that includes over 10,000 Audi vehicles. While the company was testing the Audi A4 and S4 models’ airbag systems, it was discovered that frontal air bags may fail to deploy in wrecks in which side air bags have already deployed. The model years included in this recall are 2013-2015. The problem can be fixed quickly by taking affected vehicles to Audi dealerships where the vehicles’ programming can be corrected, but many worry that accidents have already occurred in which this defect affected passenger safety. If you or someone that you know own 2013-2015 Audi A4 of S4 vehicles, it should be taken to a dealership for airbag defect corrections immediately.
At Jones & Swanson, we aid victims of auto accidents more often than any other type of injury victims. These motor vehicle accidents are caused by a variety of circumstances, sometimes user errors or weather problems, other times because something was fundamentally wrong with the vehicle. These types of accidents in which a defective part in the automobile caused a crash can be hard to prove negligence in. Our law firm’s decades of experience has allowed our lawyers and staff members the ability to appropriately represent victims of automobile defect injury claims. For more information, contact us at (770) 427-5498 or by filling out an online contact form at www.awjlaw.com.
Categories: Airbag Safety, Auto Accidents, Automobile Defects, Automobile Recall, Car Accident, Defective Products, Georgia Laws, Personal Injury, Product Liability, Product Recall, Recalls
