If you’ve been in an accident, then hopefully your airbags deployed to help reduce the risk of a car accident injury in Port St. Lucie. If your airbags failed, then the manufacturer may be liable for any injuries or deaths that occurred as a result and you’ll want to speak with a car accident injury attorney right away. However, considering how important airbags are to the safety of your vehicle, the following are some of the answers to common airbag safety questions you should know:
Is it safe to put kids in the front seat if you have frontal airbags?
No, it’s not. The NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) recommends that children under the age of 13 sit in the back seat and that children of certain ages be secured in child restraint systems. This is because airbags are deployed with great force on impact, which means a small child could be seriously injured by the airbags. However, many advanced airbags use sensors and will turn off if they dedicate someone of small stature sitting too close. While this eliminates the risk of being injured by the airbag, the child will then be vulnerable if sitting in the front seat in case of a serious car accident.
Can frontal airbags be re-used after they’ve been deployed?
Airbags cannot be reused once they have been deployed. They need to be removed and replaced by an authorized service technician as soon as possible. Not installing new airbags as soon as possible can pose a serious safety risk to the passengers and driver of the car.
What makes advanced frontal airbags different?
While old airbags were very effective in saving lives, they were known to cause serious injuries themselves as a result of the force at which they deployed. With full grown adults, any injuries that are caused by the force of an airbag are minor when compared to the injuries they could have sustained without them. However, older airbags were more likely to seriously injure, and in some cases, cause the death of smaller children. Advanced frontal airbags were designed to prevent injuries and death through the use of a high-tech sensor system. The sensor system senses the size of the person sitting in the seat and whether deployment of the airbag could injure them. It also senses if someone is sitting too close to the airbag as well. In such cases, it will automatically shut itself off.
What can cause airbags to fail during a crash?
The first thing to remember is that airbags aren’t always supposed to deploy — it depends on the circumstances of the crash. For example, a minor crash in which the seatbelt should provide adequate protection may not require airbags. However, if the airbag failed to go off in a crash that results in injuries, then it may have been defective.
These are just a few things that you should know about airbags. If you’ve sustained a car accident injury in Port St. Lucie, whether your airbag deployed or not, be sure to contact us at the Law Office of Gloria Seidule by calling 772-287-1220 for a free case evaluation today.
