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"Over the last few months air bag recalls have been in all the news media. (See our blog - Defective Air Bags Spark Warning to 4.7 Million Vehicle Owners). This is very important information to get out to the public. There is another message also regarding air bags, and that message is safely driving/riding with air bags. We are presenting this blog to be sure everyone knows the basics of air bags," says Fort Myers Automobile Accident Attorney, Randall Spivey of Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A.

What can deploy in less than 1/20th of a second?  Frontal air bags can. Side air bags deploy even faster because there is usually less space between the occupant and the force which strikes the vehicle such as another vehicle or a tree, according to Safercar.gov.

How air bags deploy- In a moderate to severe crash a signal is sent from the air bag's electronic control unit to the inflator within the air bag module. This igniter starts a chemical reaction that produces a harmless gas which inflates the air bag.

Since air bags deploy so quickly, where one sits is important in avoiding serious to fatal injuries. Safercar.gov recommends:

• Leaving 10 inches between the driver and the steering wheel or dashboard.
• Tilting the steering wheel down so the air bag deploys toward the chest, not the driver's head.
• Referencing the vehicle owner's manual for the correct placement of hands on the steering wheel.
• Never placing children under 12 years old or infants in the front seat even if your vehicle has the latest and most advanced air bags.

Frontal air bags for drivers and passengers have been required standard equipment in all passenger vehicles since the model year 1998. Over 28 thousand lives have been saved in the United States by air bags over the first 30 years of use, according to NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration).

Side air bags are not required safety equipment, but many vehicles have them. There are three types of side air bags; chest or torso, head, and head/chest combination.

• Chest/torso - These air bags can either be mounted on the side of the seat or the door.
• Head - These air bags are usually mounted in the roof rail above the side windows.
• Head/Check combination - Mounted to the side of the seat, these are usually larger than the Chest/torso air bags.

NHTSA estimates that if all vehicles on roads in the United States were equipped with head protection side air bags, 700 to 1,000 lives could be saved each year in side impact crashes. Currently, frontal air bags reduce driver fatalities in frontal crashes by 29 percent and fatalities of front-seat passengers age 13 and older by 32 percent. Side air bags which protect the head reduce a car driver's risk of death in driver-side crashes by 37 percent and an SUV driver's risk by 52 percent.

Fort Myers Automobile 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.