Auto manufacturers are responsible for designing, manufacturing and selling vehicles that are safe – and for warning consumers when they discover a defect that could pose a safety issue. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen as car makers would rather not have vehicle safety issues associated with their products. However, the recent General Motors (GM) recall of 1.6 million cars over defective ignition switches ultimately revealed that 303 people have died in car accidents due to failed air bags.
Decade-Long Failure to Correct Reveals Deeper Issue
According to the New York Times, some of GM’s vehicles have defective ignition switches that the company has allegedly failed to correct for nearly a decade. Lawmakers have been pressing GM and regulators from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to address the issue for years. But a recent review of federal crash data by a private research firm has revealed an even deeper issue.
The review, commissioned by the Center for Auto Safetyand performed by Friedman Research, revealed that 303 people died after the air bags failed to deploy in their GM vehicles. In a letter to the NHTSA, the Center for Auto Safety said that the 303 victims were in the front seat, where air bags are situated, and had died in non-rear-impact crashes in which the air bags did not deploy.
The review of the air bag failures from 2003 to 2012 adds to the mounting reports of issues that were not addressed before General Motors announced that it was recalling more than 1.6 million cars worldwide in February 2014.
GM recalled the following six car models due to defective ignition switches that, if bumped or weighed down by a heavy key chain, can shut off engines and power systems and disable air bags:
Chevrolet Cobalt(2005-2007 model years)
Pontiac G5 (2007 model year)
Saturn Ion (2003-2007 model years)
Chevrolet HHR (2006-2007 model years)
Pontiac Solstice (2006-2007 model years)
Saturn Sky (2007 model year)
All of these vehicles used the same ignition switches, and ironically, none of the vehicles are in production anymore. The GM ignition problem is connected to air bags because the bags require electrical power provided by the engine to deploy. That power is needed because the vehicles have a complex electronic sensor system that allows a computer to consider factors ranging from how rapidly a vehicle is decelerating to how close the occupant is seated to the air bag.
The computer then determines whether to deploy the air bag with full force or at a lower level. While the goal is to protect the occupant from the impact of a crash and keep the air bag itself from causing injury, that simply wasn’t being accomplished.
Car Makers May Be Held Liable for Selling a Defective Vehicle and Failing to Warn of a Discovered Defect
Auto manufacturers are required by law to ensure that the products they make and sell are safe for consumers. When car companies sell vehicles that are unsafe and fail to alert the public after discovering defects that pose a safety risk, they may be held liable for the harm their products cause.
A product liability lawsuit can help a motorist who has been seriously injured as a result of a car defect obtain money to assist with their recovery at present and in the future. A wrongful death lawsuit may assist the family of a person who has been killed because of an auto defect.
Bringing a product liability lawsuit based on an automotive defect is a complex undertaking and requires extensive research and reconstruction of the accident. It requires a law firm with the resources to thoroughly investigate and develop the facts. The Law Firm of Pajcic & Pajcic has a track record of successfully litigating complicated cases on behalf of injured victims against manufacturers in state and federal courts.
Auto manufacturers are responsible for designing, manufacturing and selling vehicles that are safe – and for warning consumers when they discover a defect that could pose a safety issue. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen as car makers would rather not have vehicle safety issues associated with their products. However, the recent General Motors (GM) recall of 1.6 million cars over defective ignition switches ultimately revealed that 303 people have died in car accidents due to failed air bags.
Decade-Long Failure to Correct Reveals Deeper Issue
According to the New York Times, some of GM’s vehicles have defective ignition switches that the company has allegedly failed to correct for nearly a decade. Lawmakers have been pressing GM and regulators from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to address the issue for years. But a recent review of federal crash data by a private research firm has revealed an even deeper issue.
The review, commissioned by the Center for Auto Safetyand performed by Friedman Research, revealed that 303 people died after the air bags failed to deploy in their GM vehicles. In a letter to the NHTSA, the Center for Auto Safety said that the 303 victims were in the front seat, where air bags are situated, and had died in non-rear-impact crashes in which the air bags did not deploy.
The review of the air bag failures from 2003 to 2012 adds to the mounting reports of issues that were not addressed before General Motors announced that it was recalling more than 1.6 million cars worldwide in February 2014.
GM recalled the following six car models due to defective ignition switches that, if bumped or weighed down by a heavy key chain, can shut off engines and power systems and disable air bags:
All of these vehicles used the same ignition switches, and ironically, none of the vehicles are in production anymore. The GM ignition problem is connected to air bags because the bags require electrical power provided by the engine to deploy. That power is needed because the vehicles have a complex electronic sensor system that allows a computer to consider factors ranging from how rapidly a vehicle is decelerating to how close the occupant is seated to the air bag.
The computer then determines whether to deploy the air bag with full force or at a lower level. While the goal is to protect the occupant from the impact of a crash and keep the air bag itself from causing injury, that simply wasn’t being accomplished.
Car Makers May Be Held Liable for Selling a Defective Vehicle and Failing to Warn of a Discovered Defect
Auto manufacturers are required by law to ensure that the products they make and sell are safe for consumers. When car companies sell vehicles that are unsafe and fail to alert the public after discovering defects that pose a safety risk, they may be held liable for the harm their products cause.
A product liability lawsuit can help a motorist who has been seriously injured as a result of a car defect obtain money to assist with their recovery at present and in the future. A wrongful death lawsuit may assist the family of a person who has been killed because of an auto defect.
Bringing a product liability lawsuit based on an automotive defect is a complex undertaking and requires extensive research and reconstruction of the accident. It requires a law firm with the resources to thoroughly investigate and develop the facts. The Law Firm of Pajcic & Pajcic has a track record of successfully litigating complicated cases on behalf of injured victims against manufacturers in state and federal courts.