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Legally Reviewed by:

Jonathan Rosenfeld
J.D

March 2, 2023

Over $400 Million worth of case results

Awarded The Best Lawyer in 2024 by U.S. News

Nationally Recognized in Legal Community

Airbag Injury Lawyer

Airbags are an essential safety device that protects a driver and passengers in serious car accidents. The airbag serves as the last remaining shield between one’s body and the car’s front window.

Without airbags, individuals in car accidents could be thrown through the windshield and likely cannot survive a severe crash. [1]

While airbags remain a great safety feature, they can also cause serious injuries when they deploy in high-impact auto accidents in Chicago, IL.

An Illinois Vehicle Airbag Injury Lawyer Can Help

The Illinois auto accident attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC understand the traumatic experience you have had with Takata airbags. Our legal team understands how overwhelming the stressful experience of recovering from a car accident can be.

Our law office has worked with other individuals who have suffered serious injuries due to an impact with an airbag, and we are ready to use our experience to benefit your case. Please get in touch with our Illinois auto accident lawyers to receive more information about your case.

Our experienced attorneys currently represent car crash victims throughout Illinois, and the following localities: Cook County, DuPage County, Kane County, Lake County, Will County, Arlington Heights, Aurora, Bolingbrook, Chicago, Elgin, Joliet, Naperville, and Waukegan.

The Mechanics of Airbags and How They Can Malfunction

An airbag is a safety device that instantly inflates upon a collision. Unfortunately, not all motorists and passengers are familiar with how airbags work. Some people are also unaware that airbags can cause severe injuries and even death.

During an accident, a sensor will signal that a collision has taken place and trigger the inflation of an airbag. Automakers install airbag devices into side doors, dashboards, and panels of a motor vehicles. Most cars feature a design where airbags inflate from all directions to cushion the driver or passenger’s upper body in a crash.

Sometimes, an airbag might malfunction and inflate for no reason. If a driver is unaware that an airbag is about to malfunction, they might be at risk of causing a severe car accident and suffering from injuries as a result.

Safety Tips to Remember When Using Cars With Airbags

If you have a car equipped with an airbag, then there are some steps that you can take to minimize your risk of injury. Because newer car models now feature multiple airbags in the front and back seats, it is even more critical that drivers are fully informed about safety tips associated with airbags [2] that include:

  • Always use a seat belt in cars with airbags
  • Attempt to be at least ten inches away from an airbag when it inflates
  • Remember that the first two to three inches from an airbag are considered the ‘danger zone’
  • Keep children in the backseats
  • Bear in mind that children are at a high risk of serious injury if they are in a front seat when an airbag inflates
  • Keep child car seats in the back rows of the car
  • If a child must sit in the front seat of a car, then make sure that you use a booster seat

National Airbag Injury Statistics

In 2017, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a research report detailing airbag injury statistics for adults and children. The study found that:

  • Over 170 children suffered from severe injuries from airbags
  • More than thirty-five children had life-threatening injuries
  • Nearly one hundred drivers suffered fatal injuries
  • About ten drivers had life-threatening injuries
  • Over ten passengers received fatal injuries

Also, the NHTSA has released these statistics regarding airbags and their dangers:

  • Over fifty auto manufacturers have Issued airbag recalls on at least one type of car due to airbag defects in airbags Installed in steering wheels and dashboards
  • Over 570,000 airbag deployments have been reported in the front passenger seat
  • About 175 people died because of airbag injuries from 1900 to 2000
  • Most individuals who die because of airbag injuries are children

Injuries Caused to People by Airbags

Our product liability lawyers have represented clients who suffered severe injuries from defective airbags, including:

  • Eye injuries
  • Lacerations and cuts
  • Asthma attacks
  • Shock
  • Crushed limbs
  • Burns
  • Suffocation
  • Paralysis
  • Death

Airbag Injury FAQs

Below are some frequently asked questions raised by people injured by airbags in motor vehicle accidents in and around Chicago, Illinois. We appreciate that you may have additional questions or concerns and we welcome you to contact our law firm for a free consultation with an experienced auto accident attorney who can advise you of your legal rights and options.

How do Airbags Work in a Car Crash?

Automobile manufacturers install sensors on the front bumper of their cars that cause the airbag to inflate when two sensors are hit on impact. The airbag begins to deflate nearly as fast as it inflated as the vehicle’s engine stops upon impact.

The occupant’s head hits the airbag at the moment when it is filled with air. Side airbags inflate simultaneously as the steering wheel’s airbag and dashboard’s airbags provide a cushion for the side of the occupant’s head.

Do Airbags Cause Injuries?

Airbags have been designed to protect vehicle occupants [3] during a horrific crash. However, since their first installation decades ago, airbags are now responsible for causing immobilizing head and neck injuries and severe brain trauma.

Some of these airbag-related injuries include spinal cord damage, traumatic brain injury (TBI), broken neck vertebrae, and whiplash.

How do You fix Airbags After an Accident?

An airbag is a one-time-use device that must be changed after it has been deployed. In some cases, replacing and deploying airbags requires mechanics with specialized training. Some vehicles require replacing the steering wheel and column.

The trained mechanic must reset the sensor in a newly replaced airbag to ensure that the safety device is fully functional.

Can an Airbag go off After an Accident?

There have been a few incidents where the airbag deployed spontaneously after the accident out of the millions of airbags installed in vehicles worldwide. Generally, these accidents involved hitting on the front bumper which was not quite the forceful impact required to deploy the device.

Can Airbags Kill You?

Deployed airbags can exert a tremendous blunt force that can significantly harm or kill the vehicle’s occupant. The airbag placement is designed to be safely fixed far enough away from the occupant’s head to avoid injury when deployed.

Small adults and young children should not sit in the car or truck’s front seat in case the airbag employees, cause severe injuries and burns. Small people’s body size cannot take the high-impact force on the face, neck, and chest.

Can an Airbag Damage Your Heart?

Carmakers and airbag manufacturers have long known the hidden dangers behind airbags designed to prevent injury and death in horrific car accidents. However, the deployed airbag’s blunt force, hitting an occupant’s chest, could cause life-threatening pulmonary and cardiac injuries.

The airbag’s powerful force can also break bones, including the rib cage, wrist, hand, arms, facial bones, and spinal column.

Contact Experienced Chicago, Illinois Auto Airbag Injury Lawyers When You Sustain an Airbag Injury

Our personal injury lawyers have sympathy during your difficult time and are here to help you get back to a healthier life. We will fight hard to get you the justice and financial compensation that you deserve.

Contact our law firm today at (888) 424-5757 (toll-free phone call) or through the contact form to schedule a free consultation. All discussions with our injury attorneys remain confidential through an attorney-client relationship.

Please do not send sensitive information to our law office through voicemail, email, or text message. Our Chicago car accident lawyers follow social distancing guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid-19 (coronavirus).

Resources: [1] NIH, [2] iihs.org, [3] NHTSA

Client Reviews

Jonathan Rosenfeld was professionally objective, timely, and knowledgeable. Also, his advice was extremely effective regarding my case. In addition, Jonathan was understanding and patient pertaining to any of my questions or concerns. I was very happy with the end result and I highly recommend Jonathan Rosenfeld.

- Michonne Proulx

Extremely impressed with this law firm. They took control of a bad motorcycle crash that left my uncle seriously injured. Without any guarantee of a financial recovery, they went out and hired accident investigators and engineers to help prove how the accident happened. I am grateful that they worked on a contingency fee basis as there was no way we could have paid for these services on our own.

- Ethan Armstrong

Jonathan helped my family heal and get compensation after our child was suffered a life threatening injury at daycare. He was sympathetic and in constant contact with us letting us know all he knew every step of the way. We were so blessed to find Jonathan!

- Giulia

This lawyer really helped me get compensation for my motorcycle accident case. I know there is no way that I could have gotten anywhere near the amount that Mr. Rosenfeld was able to get to settle my case. Thank you.

- Daniel Kaim

Jonathan did a great job helping my family navigate through a lengthy lawsuit involving my grandmother's death in a nursing home. Through every step of the case, Jonathan kept my family informed of the progression of the case. Although our case eventually settled at a mediation, I really was impressed at how well prepared Jonathan was to take the case to trial.

- Lisa
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