The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is imploring vehicle owners with defective Takata airbags to have their cars repaired and this time their efforts are focused on Southern Florida. Safety experts report that almost 459,000 south Florida residents in Broward and Miami-Dade counties have still not repaired their recalled vehicles equipped with defective airbags.
As of now, at least 23 fatalities and 300 injuries have been linked to defective airbags. But the risks posed by Takata airbags in recalled vehicles is even greater in hot and humid locations like South Florida. In these climates, Takata airbags are more prone to exploding and seriously injuring drivers and passengers when shrapnel is projected inside the vehicle. When cars are driven in high temperature regions, the ammonium nitrate propellant in the inflator is more likely to deteriorate. The degradation causes the propellant to burn too quickly and trigger deployment of the defective airbag.
The South Florida region has a high number of unrepaired defective airbags, which has alarmed safety experts. The NHTSA reports that South Florida is well below the national average by region for cars with defective Takata airbags that have undergone repairs. As such, the agency has begun an awareness campaign aimed at South Florida residents. The NHTSA and various manufacturers teamed up with Broward College to warn drivers that waiting to repair their cars can pose a significant safety risk. In its notice, the NHTSA urged South Florida car owners to check their VIN numbers to see if their vehicles are affected by the recall.
As the largest auto recall in history, the Takata airbag recall has affected nearly 37 million cars with 50 million airbags. As of April 27, only 60% of the defective airbags have been replaced. Three Florida residents were among those killed by defective airbags. In these incidents, the airbag implosions resulted from minor fender benders which normally would have caused no significant injuries whatsoever. With nearly one half million residents still driving cars equipped with these airbags, the agency has stressed that this is an urgent matter that car owners should attend to immediately.
If you or a member of your family suffered injury or death as a result of negligence or a defective automobile, contact the attorneys Alexander Law Group, LLP. Our exceptional personal injury lawyers will answer your questions and get you the maximum compensation that is possible. Call 888.777.1776 or contact us online.
