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On November 29, 2017, the National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) announced improvements made to its website to assist consumers in getting the most up-to-date information as quickly as possible using its new search functions. 

The announcement said, "Consumers can now view Takata airbag repair rates by priority group; repair rates over time for each affected vehicle manufacturer; in addition to repair rates for driver-side airbags, passenger-side airbags, and all airbags. Users will also be able to perform more advanced searches using Recall Campaign Numbers.” 

The need for improved search functions became evident following May 19, 2015, NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind and Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx’s announcement that the Takata Corporation estimated 33.8 million vehicles manufactured by 11 different automakers had defective faulty airbags. Bloomberg News reported at the time that  NHTSA researchers believe this auto recall is not only the largest in the United States but also possibly the largest in all of U.S. consumer product recalls. 

How bad is the problem? 

Car and Driver magazine says that by 2020, NHTSA expects there to be 42 million vehicles with Takata airbags under a recall since additional airbags are scheduled to be recalled by December 2019, bringing the total number of affected airbags to around 65-70 million. 

At least 11 deaths and 180 injuries in the U.S. have been linked to defective airbags. The defects cause the airbags to inflate with too much force and send metal shards into the cabin of the car, according to NPR (National Public Radio). 

Who is responsible for replacing the defective airbags? 

In late February 2017, Japanese auto parts maker Takata Corporation pleaded guilty to one count of fraud and agreed to pay $1 billion for concealing a defect in millions of its airbag inflators. 

U.S. safety regulators have said automakers are responsible for replacing defective airbags no matter what happens to Takata. The automakers could face costs to replace all the defective airbags "that would be 5, 6 or 9 times the $850 million" set aside in the fund, said U.S. District Court Judge George Steeh. Judge Steeh further said that the replacement cost could be more than $7.6 billion. 

Even though dealers will replace the airbags for free when parts are available, it will take years to replace all the affected airbag inflators. The government is prioritizing the repairs by vehicle age and climate, since high humidity is a factor in inflator ruptures, reported Boston.com in January 2017. 

NHTSA urges consumers to stay informed and safe, by taking the following five actions. 

1. Visitgov to find out if your car or truck is under recall. Search using your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). Your search result will tell you if your car or truck is included in this or any other safety recall at this time. Vehicles scheduled for future recalls will not show up in this search, so it is important that people check regularly, at least twice per year.
2. If your vehicle does have a recall, call your local dealer to schedule the free repair. Just remember that in the Takata airbag recalls, there are priority groups; parts are only available for certain vehicles starting at certain dates. 
3. Sign up at Gov.alerts to be notified by e-mail if your vehicle is affected by a future recall. 
4. Get answers to frequently asked questions at gov/recall-spotlight/takata-airbags.
5. Help spread the word: Share NHTSA’sconsumer fact sheet and video with friends and family.

“The Takata Air Bag recall is a very serious recall affecting millions of people, not only drivers and their passengers but everyone else on the roads who can be affected by the loss of control of the vehicle. Contact our unsafe vehicles team to assist you if you have been injured in an accident because of the Takata airbags. There are no costs or attorney fees unless we make a monetary recovery for you,” said Fort Myers Car Accident Attorney, Randall Spivey of Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A. 

Fort Myers Car Accident Attorney, Randall L. Spivey is a Board Certified Trial Attorney – the highest recognition for competence bestowed by the Florida Bar and a distinction earned by just one (1%) percent of Florida attorneys.  He has handled over 2,000 personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout Florida.  For a free and confidential consultation to discuss your legal rights, contact the Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A., in Lee County at 239.337.7483 or toll-free at 1.888.477.4839, or by email to Randall@SpiveyLaw.com.  Visit SpiveyLaw.com for more information.  You can contact Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A.in Charlotte County at 941.764.7748 and in Collier County 239.793.7748.