Death Toll for Defective Takata Airbags Reaches 14

Two more deaths directly linked to faulty Takata airbags have exacerbated the largest auto recall to ever transpire, with roughly 313,000 ’01–’03 Honda and Acura vehicles affected. Among the recent fatalities include a woman who succumbed to injuries sustained from a collision in Riverside County, California and a death that occurred in Malaysia. Both deaths arose from ruptured Takata airbag inflators on the driver-side. The global casualty count for Takata’s defective airbags has climbed to 14 with 11 deaths occurring in the U.S.

Nearly 100 million Takata air bag inflators have been declared to be defective. A substantial recall from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has led to the replacement of approximately 11.4 million airbags as of October 7, 2016, a number that makes up only 36 percent of the faulty airbags. About 70 million more airbags are expected to be recalled through 2019, encompassing the largest auto recall in U.S. history.

While 14 people have died because of the faulty airbags, more than 100 other injuries have been sustained by drivers of the affected vehicles. The disastrous amount of casualties and injuries brought on by the airbags has led Takata Corp. to suffer a dramatic financial decline along with plummeted stock prices.

Defectively manufactured products have the potential to cause significant injury to consumers worldwide. If you have been hurt by or sustained losses because of a faulty mechanism in your vehicle, don’t hesitate to contact Pohl & Berk, LLP at 615-277-2765 to learn about how you can recover damages for your suffering.