New Mexico Airbag Injuries

Over the course of 30 years, frontal airbags have saved the lives of more than 50,000 people across the United States. This is one reason why airbags have been required in vehicles manufactured since 1999. 

However, airbags can sometimes pose a threat to vehicle occupants - especially children, the elderly, and individuals with certain pre-existing medical conditions. When an airbag deploys, it does so with force. This force of impact can cause drivers and vehicle passengers to suffer serious, potentially deadly, injuries in a crash. In these cases, contacting a car crash lawyer in Albuquerque is an important step to take.

How Do Airbags Cause Injuries?

Airbags are intended to inflate and deploy whenever a vehicle is involved in a "moderate to severe" collision. When an airbag sensor is triggered, an ignitor creates a small chemical reaction that creates a gas. This gas fills the airbag, causing it to expand and protrude into the vehicle. All of this happens in about 1/20th of a second or loss.

Needless to say, the airbag deploys with significant speed and force - anywhere from 100 MPH to 200 MPH and 5 PSI. Even though an airbag is vented and deflates quickly, it does make very hard contact with vehicle occupants. 

As a result, occupants can suffer blunt force trauma to the face, head, neck, chest, and/or abdomen, depending on their size and proximity to the airbag. When children are riding in the front passenger seat of a vehicle, there’s an increased risk of suffocation when an airbag deploys.

Airbags can also cause injuries when they are defective. There have been situations when airbags do not deploy or when the ignition process starts a fire in the airbag’s compartment within the vehicle. When airbags fail to deploy, occupants of the vehicle are more likely to suffer whiplash and/or strike their heads on the dashboard or steering wheel.

What Types of Injuries Can Airbags Cause?

Airbags can cause a variety of physical injuries, including:

• Broken bones, particularly in the nose and face
• Fractured bones
• Chest injuries
• Soft tissue injuries, including contusions and lacerations
• Eye injuries
• Vision and hearing injuries
• Internal bleeding
• Burn injuries

While rare, airbags can also cause death. Research shows that 290 people were killed by frontal airbags in low-impact collisions between 1990 and 2008. When you lose a loved one due to an airbag injury, contact a wrongful death attorney in Albuquerque for help navigating the legal process.

Who’s Liable For Airbag Injuries?

It depends. If someone else caused your car accident in New Mexico, you’ll have the right to seek compensation from them - including for injuries caused by your airbags. Through an insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit, you can seek compensatory damages for your medical bills, loss of income, and other crash-related damages.

If you’ve been injured because of defective airbags, you may have a valid claim against the manufacturer. 

Don’t stress about how to recover compensation for your airbag injuries or from whom. Focus on your recovery and trust Singleton Schreiber’s New Mexico car accident lawyers to handle your legal claim.

We’re award-winning trial attorneys with decades of experience and an unrivaled track record of success exceeding $2.5 Billion in damages. Call one of our New Mexico law offices - conveniently located in Albuquerque, Clovis, Hobbs, Las Vegas, Los Lunas, Mora, and Ruidoso - to set a time for a free case evaluation now.