Volkswagen’s cheating emissions scandal falls second place after the Takata airbag recall, which continues to be the largest safety campaign in the country’s history.
Exploding airbags, which send shrapnel towards occupants, have claimed the tenth life in the United States, after a 17-year old girl, driving a 2002 Honda Civic in Fort Bend County, Texas, was involved in an accident, on March 31.
Her car rear-ended another vehicle, which triggered the airbags, sending shrapnel towards her neck and killing her on the spot, said Sheriff’s Deputy Danny Beckwith, who was investigating the crash, quoted by AutoNews. Beckwith commented that there was no excessive speeding involved and the girl was wearing her seatbelt: “Everybody should have walked away from this.“
The Honda Civic was bought by the girl’s family second-hand, without them knowing it was part of a recall. The automaker’s spokesman, Jeffery Smith, said that Honda has sent more than 11.9 million postcards, 9.9 million mailers, 4.5 million emails and 12.8 million direct and automated phone calls to owners of affected vehicles, while also using targeted advertising, social media and other efforts.
Despite the efforts put by Honda and other automakers in the United States, 10 people have died in accidents linked to exploding Takata airbags, out of which 9 have occurred in Honda vehicles and one in a Ford. The list of injuries expands beyond 100 victims.
A total of 24 million vehicles have been recalled in the United States, by 14 automakers, to replace about 28 million problematic inflators, and last month, the NHTSA has announced that more than 7.5 million Takata inflators have been replaced, which means approximately a third of those recalled through December.