Macon Airbag Injury Attorney

While the goal of an airbag is to provide a cushioning effect during a collision and prevent a vehicle’s occupants from striking the windshield or dashboard, airbags themselves can cause more damage than the actual collision. If you or a loved one has been hurt by an airbag, it is important to contact a Macon airbag injury lawyer. The personal injury attorneys at the Mann Law Firm can help by reviewing your circumstances and discussing all available legal options.

Call us at (478) 742-3381 or fill out our online form. In addition to cases handled in Macon, we are prepared to handle claims on behalf of clients in Dublin, Warner Robins, Milledgeville and other Georgia communities. We would like to meet with you to discuss your case, and we are proud to offer free initial consultations.

How Airbags Work

The first airbag design was patented in 1953 as a “safety cushion assembly for automotive vehicles.” The inventor was searching for a way to reduce injuries during emergency braking as well as frontal collisions – and he found it. From the first crude prototypes evolved a system that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates reduces the risk of death by 51 percent, when combined with a lap and shoulder belt. In fact, airbags are considered to be supplemental restraints and are not meant to be used without a seatbelt. If you’ve been in a collision, consulting with a truck accident lawyer can provide guidance on your rights and any potential compensation.

When a certain threshold is met or exceeded and the airbag control unit determines an accident has occurred, inflation is activated with a force of close to 200 miles per hour. The airbag fills the space between the person and the steering wheel or dashboard, begins to deflate, and cools – all within half the time it takes to blink an eye.

Injuries Caused By Airbags

Airbag injuries can be very serious. Many are likely to be fatal or to cause permanent health issues. Examples of injuries caused by airbags include:

• Asthma attacks
• Brain injury
• Broken bones
• Bruising
• Burns
• Chemical poisoning
• Eye damage
• Hearing loss
• Internal bleeding
• Scarring/disfigurement.

Causes of Airbag Injuries

If a malfunctioning sensor causes airbag deployment when there is no crash, you can imagine how startling it could be! Airbags that deploy inadvertently, fail to deploy, deploy too early, deploy too late or deploy over-aggressively can all cause injuries or fatalities. The effects of manufacturing and design defects in an airbag system have been on unparalleled display with the recent recall of 30 million vehicles due to defective Takata airbags, which can explode suddenly and send metal fragments flying into the passenger compartment. Several deaths and more than 100 injuries have been linked to these airbags. Deployment gone wrong, forceful impacts, dangerous explosions, and toxic chemical exposure are all real concerns.

Types of Airbag Defects that Could Lead to Compensation

In order to get compensation for your airbag injuries, you will need to prove that the airbag was defective.  The three types of airbag defects that could lead to compensation include:

• Manufacturing Defect – This type of defect occurs while the airbag is being made.  Something happened during the manufacturing of the airbag that caused a defect in the product.
• Failure to Warn Defect – The manufacturer has an obligation to warn the consumer that airbags installed in the car can be dangerous.
• Design Defect – This type of defect occurs during the design of the airbag.  You may be compensated for your injuries if you can prove that the airbag was not designed properly and you suffered injuries because of the defect in design.

Types of Damages in Airbag Lawsuits

You may be compensated if you can prove that you were injured because of an airbag defect.  There are two types of damages in product liability cases:

• Economic Damages – These types of damages include anything easily calculable, like medical bills and loss of wages.  Economic damages are not usually contested because they are straightforward.  You were injured because of the defect in the airbag, and this is how much it cost.
• Noneconomic Damages – These types of damages are fought over quite often, because they are mostly a matter of opinion by a professional.  For example, you can claim noneconomic damages of pain and suffering.  There is no exact price on pain and suffering, so much discussion takes place on how much your pain and suffering is worth.

Contact Our Macon Airbag Injury Attorney Today

If you were injured or lost a loved one due to an exploding airbag in a car, SUV or truck, the Macon airbag injury attorneys of the Mann Law Firm can help. We aggressively seek full and fair compensation for our clients and are always willing to take a case to trial if necessary. The compensation available in a defective airbag claim may include payment of medical bills, compensation for lost wages and future lost income, and compensation for pain and suffering and emotional distress. If you lost a loved one due to airbag injuries, you could be entitled to compensation in a wrongful death claim. We have been successfully litigating personal injury cases across Georgia for over 50 years.

Our job is to examine the circumstances of what caused the accident while focusing on our client’s future. With our experience, we know how to seek compensation from all possible sources, and we will carefully calculate your past, current and future losses to get you the best possible recovery. While we cannot guarantee the outcome of any case, we can promise to listen, to advise, and to deliver unwavering legal advocacy on your behalf. Contact us at (478) 742-3381 or use this convenient online contact form. Let us help you.