Airbag Case Settles

This crashworthiness action arose from a collision which occurred in New Jersey.  We represented the seat-belted driver of a vehicle traveling at a moderate rate of speed on a two-lane highway in Warren County, New Jersey.  The driver was returning to Pennsylvania from his place of employment in New Jersey, when the vehicle traveled onto the opposite lane of travel.  There was a head-on impact.  In the collision, the driver-side airbag did not deploy and the driver-side shoulder harness was torn from its lap belt.  The driver was killed on impact.

Even though the driver was properly restrained by his seatbelt, the failure to deploy the Frontal Impact Airbag led to the vulnerability of his body having to absorb the crash forces that were being produced. These harmful forces would have been reduced or eliminated by the proper deployment of the frontal impact airbag. Additionally, a clear failure of the seatbelt further exacerbated the injury potential of the collision to the driver.

The failure to deploy the driver front airbag resulted directly in the fatal injuries suffered in the collision. The failure to deploy the driver frontal impact airbag rendered the vehicle defective and unreasonably dangerous in the subject collision.  The case settled for a confidential amount during mediation.