MILLIONS of drivers have been warned they could have a worrying fault in their car – here’s how to get yours checked.
Airbags are supposed to protect us as a potentially life saving feature – but at least 2.2million motorists could be sitting in front of a faulty one.
Japanese automaker corporation, Takata, make and sell vehicle parts and components.
However, about 10 years ago, a fault in their air bag system caused the chemical component which inflates the fabric to malfunction and it’s metal container started to explode.
This horrendous error saw at least 27 people killed by flying shards of metal being released into the car.
An 18-year-old student was thought to have tragically lost her life in 2009 after the airbag in her Honda Accord deployed.
Ashley Parnham’s neck was sliced open by the shards after a low-speed crash in a car park activated the system and she bled out in the driver’s seat.
Takata were involved in a huge airbag recall after it was discovered an estimated 100million car owners were on the roads with these potentially fatal safety systems.
It is understood just over five million were in the UK, but even after a decade, research has revealed there are still around two million that need to urgently be reviewed.
This concerning revelation comes after Auto Express were shared disturbing data by the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).
The fault is made worse is hotter countries as the metal parts break down quicker.
Aussie owners as well as those in the US have been warned not to drive their car if the airbag had been produced by Takata.
Due to the cooler weather here in the UK, Brits with these vehicles have been classified as lower risk.
But, despite potentially fatal malfunction, there was no mandatory order placed on Takata to fix each airbag.
A DVSA spokesperson told Auto Express: “The safety recall action regarding the Takata concern has been a precautionary measure and voluntary in nature. However, this remains under constant review.
“Manufacturers are taking measures, which include staggering and prioritising safety recalls, as well as monitoring and testing prior to any safety recall launch.
“Therefore, it is expected that new safety recalls will be launched in the future for this concern.”
Since news broke of the killer airbags, Honda has recalled 10,000 cars and at present fixed just over 80 per cent of the affected vehicles.
Meanwhile, Ford has only solved just under 30 per cent of the faulty components, according to the DSVA.
A Ford spokesperson denied these figures: “We are currently at Phase 10 of the recalls with 161,415 of the 219,713 affected vehicles recalle in line with the agreed phase launching approach.
“All these customers have been mailed at least once, but the bulk of the owners have been mailed multiple times. The completion rate for the vehicles recalled thus far stands at 42 per cent.”
In addition, Mazda have claimed they still need to rework 6,692 cars in the UK – which makes up two percent of their global total.
A spokesperson said: “These customers are written to and E-mailed on a regular basis, with a follow up call also made. But unfortunately, some customers are not willing to accept that the work needs to be done and avoid booking their car into their dealership at all costs.”
An anonymous senior industry figure, also explained the issue of finding staff to complete the work once a fault is detected.
They added: “There is a real lack of technicians in the dealer network, which means workshops are stacked out.
“It means anyone trying to book in their car to have the airbag checked might have to wait months for an appointment.”
And, Nissan have tried to combat the issue by joining forces with the RAC to offer a mobile service.
This will mean car owners can have the airbag fixed or replaced from their own home.
