Saturday 7 September 2013

Airbag Dilemma.


                                   

Airbags are there for your safety; right?

A few evenings ago we had some Australian friends around, who might question this presumption.

There they were, a few hundred metres from home, driving along in their Fiat Multipla, when the passenger side airbag suddenly burst into life for no apparent reason. It knocked C sideways, and the bruising on her arm was spectacular (I didn't get to see the worst of her bruises for reasons of decency).

OK, they were simply driving through their village very slowly, and P managed to pull-up without incident, but imagine had the same thing happened on a motorway, or in heavy traffic. The consequences could have been disastrous.

My first thought was for 'compensation'; take bloody Fiat to the cleaners! The bag was obviously faulty, and the fault lies with Fiat. The car was fully certificated 'road worthy', and no collision was responsible for the bag's inflation. It was Fiat's fault; full stop!

Our current Compact Royce is the first car I've owned that has airbags, and I'm now wondering if they'll one day explode for no discernible reason, leaving me with an arm that similarly resembles a 'Cherry and Prune Spotted Dick'.

I've never been a 'run to the lawyers for compensation' type of person, but in this particular case C definitely deserves a financial apology.

If you have experience of such things, or just an opinion, I'd be very happy to hear them.


13 comments:

  1. I live in dread of my airbag going off - I wonder what happens to the plastic cover. They are inflated with a high-explosive charge, because anything else isn't quick enough. My manual says, "If your airbag goes off, the cabin will fill with smoke. This is normal". Oh no it isn't!

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  2. Even if it isn't motivated by a desire for compensation, the incident should be brought to the manufacturer's attention so that any fault can be identified to avoid a recurrence and the potentially disastrous consequences you point out. Clearly, all the evidence of a fault is there; only one airbag functioned, there is no sign of collision damage.

    Like you, I am not one who runs off to a lawyer for compensation every time I stub my toe (unlike British policemen and teachers) but in this case, I think a claim should be pursued simply because the threat of litigation and bad press is the only thing big companies take seriously. I would even go so far as to say you have a moral duty to pursue this so the incident is properly investigated and action to rectify the obvious problem taken.

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  3. You know Cro, Hippo is absolutely correct in what he says.

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  4. Airbags saved my husbands and my life. They also injured me, but eventually I recovered which would have not occurred without them.

    Suing someone is not an easy or pleasant thing and one should consider carefully all the pros and cons before doing such a thing. The lawyers here take 30 to 40 percent and it could take years to come to a settlement.

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    Replies
    1. There is no question that airbags, along with earlier legislation mandating the wearing of seatbelts has saved countless lives but, even if the lawyers earn 100% of the settlement, it is still worth pursuing and driving home that faulty safety equipment needs to be rectified. After all, customers are not just demonstrating their confidence in a particular car manufacturer, in cases like these, they are unwittingly placing their lives in their hands every time they switch on the ignition. Imagine how you would feel if some poor bastard, like Cro, driving along a French lane, lost control of his car because the dash of his car suddenly exploded in his face causing him to crash head on into your car killing all your kids and his screaming passengers?

      Would that have been his fault?

      Clearly there is an isssue with Fiat airbags. Fiat has provided safe mobility to the masses so I am sure they will take this seriously but it must be brought to their attention. If they do not know about it, they can and will do nothing.

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  5. SO sorry C was hurt, I hope she is on the mend now, what a horrible shock for them both.
    I can't add anything, except to say that we've had cars with airbags for some 15 years or more and never had this happen.

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  6. Never heard of anything like this Cro - we have airbags and have done for years but no trouble so far (Vauxhall) - shall be a bit wary in future though - I have no desire to have an arm like a plum pudding.

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  7. Corporations (at least here in the US) can only be brought to rectify situations like faulty airbags by being sued and hitting them the only place it hurts (the bottom line). Although I agree that airbags save lives when functioning properly, faulty ones could cause worse accidents than what your friend had. She should definitely sue them so they will be more likely to correct whatever is wrong with their product.

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  8. Airbags have saved so many lives. They also pack quite a punch.

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  9. Thanks everyone; your comments will be passed on!

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  10. I never had an airbag deploy like that, but i agree with you, Cro. Fiat needs to be told immediately, and they need to find out why this happened and if and how it can be prevented from happening again.

    My cars are new enough to have airbags, and old enough to have the kind of airbags that will kill me if they are deployed because i'm too small in stature. When i mentioned this and asked if the airbag could be disabled as i am the primary driver of the vehicle, the dealership countered with i ought to drive with my seat farther back. Um, that doesn't work exactly, as if i put my seat back to where you think i won't die, my feet don't touch the pedals, so how am i supposed to drive the bloody car?

    In my view they are a tool that can help some, probably most, and the minority they can't help, like me, will be ignored.

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  11. I've never had an airbag experience, but they are mandatory in cars here and have been for years.

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    Replies
    1. Sorry, I should say new cars. People aren't retrofitting old cars. And come to think of it, I'm not sure there's any law about it. It's just that everyone wants them in their cars now, for the most part.

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