Many factors contribute to determining whether or not you should decide to file a lawsuit because your airbag did not deploy.
These are the factors that will help you decide whether to take legal action:
1. Under normal circumstances, should the airbag have deployed in this type of crash?
2. Why did not the airbag deploy?
3. If the airbag had worked, could I have been less injured?
4. Are the injuries caused by the defective airbag serious enough or life threatening enough to be worth the cost of pursuing a defective airbag lawsuit?
1. Under normal circumstances, should the airbag have deployed in the crash?
Prior to deciding whether to file a product liability lawsuit for a defective airbag, it is best to examine the facts about the incident to know for sure there the airbag did not work properly. In other words, should the airbag have deployed in the crash? Oftentimes, to answer this question, an investigator is used to examine the evidence. The speed that the car was traveling at is an important element to consider. A typical airbag will deploy if the car is traveling at a speed equal to or slower than 14 mph. Moreover, the type of impact plays a role in whether an airbag will deploy. The airbags in the front of the vehicle should deploy in frontal impact crashes. Therefore, if you were traveling at a speed of or over 14 mph and were hit in the front of your vehicle, then the frontal airbags should have deployed. However, if you experienced a crash in the rear of your vehicle, then your airbag may not have gone off because it was not made for this type of accident. Newer vehicles also have side airbags, so it is necessary to determine where the airbags are located in the car and analyze their effectiveness according to the type of accident that occurred.
2. Why did not the airbag deploy?
You need to prove that there is something wrong with the airbag that caused it to not deploy even if you simply think that it should have in the accident that you had. You need to have an expert with an engineering background testify that there is something wrong with the airbag. It can be expensive to have experts in this field to come and give a testimony on your behalf. Therefore, if you were not severely injured, it would not be wise to spend the money on attempting to prove that the airbag should have worked.
3. If the airbag had worked, could I have been less injured?
In order to prove that you would have incurred less injuries if the airbag had gone off, medical experts should also be asked to provide a testimony to provide evidence of this fact.
4. Are the injuries caused by the defective airbag serious enough or life threatening enough to be worth the cost of pursuing a defective airbag lawsuit?
As you can see, airbag cases are complex, and costly to pursue. It may not be worth it to pursue a lawsuit of this kind, even if you believe that you have a strong claim. In other words, if the injuries that you sustained as a result of the airbag not deploying were not substantial, then the cost of going through the legal process could be more than the settlement. On the other hand, if you did in fact experience serious injuries or one of the passengers was killed, you should consider pursuing a case and should contact a personal injury lawyer immediately.