The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is calling for a recall of 67 million U.S. vehicles for faulty and dangerous airbags made by Arc Automotive.
This recall involves airbags made by Arc that have been found to contain metal fragments. Those fragments can cause a dangerous rise in pressure in the airbags, leading to explosions that send shards of metal flying throughout the interior of the vehicles in which the airbags are installed.
Hasn’t NHTSA taken this action before?
Yup.
In 2014, the agency recalled the same number of vehicles (67 million) for defective airbags made by Takata. Those airbags were filled with unstable gas and sometimes caused lethal explosions inside the vehicles.
Arc Automotive is refusing to issue a recall, but one automaker, GM, is not waiting and has issued a recall of one million of its vehicles that use these airbags (all are model years 2014 and 2017):
- Buick Enclave
- Chevrolet Traverse
- GMC Acadia from model years 2014 through 2017
The NHTSA has reported that over a dozen manufacturers, including Volkswagen, Ford, BMW, and GM, use Arc airbags. At this point, the agency has yet to release a list of the vehicle models involved.
If Arc Automotive continues to refuse to issue a blanket recall, NHSTA has stated they will take the company to court.
If you are anxious to know whether your vehicle uses Arc airbags, call a local dealer that carries your vehicle model and ask.
If you’re ever injured by a defective product of any kind, know that the Connecticut product liability attorneys at RisCassi & Davis have been assisting people injured by defective products for over 65 years. And we have received meaningful state and national recognition for our work in this area. If you are ever injured in an accident of any kind and would like a free consultation with one of our Connecticut personal injury lawyers, please contact us. There is no obligation.