Airbags are supposed to save lives, but when they fail or deploy the wrong way, they can cause severe injuries or make a crash far worse than it should have been. A Greenville defective airbag lawyer can help injured victims understand their legal rights and pursue compensation from the manufacturers, suppliers, and other parties responsible for putting a dangerous product on the road.
Most people assume that when their car’s safety systems fail, there is nothing they can do beyond filing an insurance claim. Defective airbag cases are different. They fall under product liability law, which holds manufacturers and sellers legally responsible for harm caused by unsafe products. A Greenville defective airbag lawyer handles these cases by identifying exactly where the failure occurred in the design, manufacturing, or distribution chain and building a claim that targets the right parties.
At South Carolina Personal Injury Attorneys LLC, we represent people in Greenville who have been hurt by defective airbags and other dangerous automotive products. If you or a family member suffered injuries because an airbag failed to deploy, deployed without warning, or caused burns and shrapnel injuries, our team is ready to help. Call us at (864) 990-0904 for a free consultation, or fill out our online contact form and we will get back to you right away.
What Is a Defective Airbag Claim in South Carolina?
A defective airbag claim is a type of product liability lawsuit filed against a manufacturer, distributor, or seller when an airbag causes harm due to a flaw in its design, production, or the warnings provided about it. South Carolina product liability law, grounded in general tort principles and the South Carolina Products Liability Act, allows injured consumers to seek compensation without needing to prove the manufacturer was careless in the traditional sense. Instead, the focus is on whether the product was unreasonably dangerous when it left the manufacturer’s control.
These claims differ from standard car accident cases because the injury did not just come from the crash itself. The airbag either made things worse or caused a separate injury entirely, which means the legal case involves the automotive supply chain in addition to any other at-fault drivers. South Carolina courts recognize claims based on manufacturing defects, design defects, and failure to warn, all of which can apply in airbag injury cases.
The statute of limitations for filing a product liability claim in South Carolina is three years under S.C. Code § 15-3-530. Missing this deadline can permanently bar recovery, so speaking with a defective airbag attorney in Greenville as soon as possible after an injury is important.
Common Types of Defective Airbag Failures
Not every airbag failure looks the same. Some airbags fail silently while others cause violent and unexpected injuries. Understanding the type of failure involved helps determine who can be held responsible.
- Failure to deploy – The airbag does not inflate during a crash that should have triggered it, leaving the occupant without protection and increasing the risk of head, face, and chest injuries.
- Inadvertent or spontaneous deployment – The airbag deploys without any crash occurring, striking the driver or passenger without warning and potentially causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
- Explosive or forceful deployment – The airbag inflates with excessive force, sending metal fragments, debris, or the inflator itself into the vehicle cabin. The Takata airbag recall is the most widely known example of this failure type.
- Late deployment – The airbag inflates too slowly or too late to provide meaningful protection during impact, leaving occupants exposed during the most critical milliseconds of a crash.
- Defective inflator components – A faulty inflator can rupture during deployment, scattering sharp metal fragments that act like shrapnel inside the cabin.
- Sensor malfunctions – A defective crash sensor may fail to recognize the severity of an impact or trigger deployment under the wrong conditions entirely.
Each of these failures can cause serious physical harm, and each points to a different part of the manufacturing or design process where something went wrong.
Injuries Caused by Defective Airbags
Defective airbags can cause injuries that are distinct from typical crash injuries, and in many cases the airbag itself causes the most serious harm. Injuries from airbag failures tend to affect the face, neck, chest, and eyes because these areas are closest to the deploying bag.
Some of the most common injuries seen in defective airbag cases include traumatic brain injuries and concussions caused by abnormal deployment force, facial lacerations and broken facial bones, eye injuries ranging from irritation to permanent vision loss, chemical burns from the propellants used to inflate the bag, internal chest injuries from over-inflation impact, hearing damage caused by the explosive sound of a rupturing inflator, and deep lacerations from metal shrapnel when an inflator ruptures. Injuries from these failures often require surgery, extended hospitalization, and long-term rehabilitation. The costs can be significant, and victims should not be left paying those bills when a manufacturer’s defective product caused the harm.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Defective Airbag Injury?
One of the most important aspects of a defective airbag case is identifying every party in the supply chain that may share responsibility. Multiple companies are often involved in getting an airbag from raw materials to the finished vehicle, and more than one of them can face legal liability.
- Airbag manufacturers – The company that designed and built the airbag itself is often the primary defendant. If a flaw existed in the inflator design or the manufacturing process, the manufacturer can be held liable.
- Automotive vehicle manufacturers – The car manufacturer that installed the airbag system in the vehicle may also carry responsibility, especially if the integration of the airbag with the vehicle’s sensor systems contributed to the failure.
- Component part suppliers – Airbags are made of many individual components supplied by third parties. A defective part from a supplier further up the chain can be enough to establish liability against that supplier.
- Distributors and dealerships – In some cases, a dealership that was aware of a recall or known defect and failed to fix it before selling the vehicle may bear some responsibility for resulting injuries.
- Repair shops – A shop that installed an aftermarket airbag or improperly serviced the airbag system can be held liable if their work contributed to a failure.
A Greenville defective airbag lawyer will investigate all of these parties to make sure every responsible entity is included in the claim.
How Much Is My Defective Airbag Case Worth?
The value of a defective airbag injury case depends on the severity of the injuries, the cost of medical treatment, and the financial losses the victim has suffered or will suffer in the future. Because airbag defect cases often involve serious injuries like facial trauma, eye damage, and burns, settlements and verdicts can be substantial.
Compensation in a defective airbag case typically includes:
- Medical expenses – Emergency treatment, surgery, hospitalization, specialist care, and ongoing rehabilitation all factor into the claim.
- Future medical costs – If the injury requires long-term treatment, reconstructive procedures, or assistive devices, those future costs should be part of the recovery.
- Lost wages – Income lost during recovery, as well as reduced earning capacity if the injury limits the ability to work going forward.
- Pain and suffering – Physical pain, emotional distress, and the lasting psychological impact of traumatic injuries are compensable under South Carolina law.
- Scarring and disfigurement – Permanent facial scarring or physical changes resulting from shrapnel or chemical burns can significantly increase the value of a claim.
- Loss of enjoyment of life – Compensation for activities, hobbies, and quality of life that the injury has taken away.
In cases where the manufacturer acted with reckless disregard for consumer safety, such as continuing to sell vehicles with known defective airbags, South Carolina courts may also award punitive damages under S.C. Code § 15-32-530. Your Greenville defective airbag attorney will assess all of these factors to build a full picture of your losses.
What Does It Cost to Hire a Greenville Defective Airbag Lawyer?
Hiring a defective airbag attorney in Greenville does not require any money upfront. South Carolina Personal Injury Attorneys LLC works on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay no legal fees at all unless we recover compensation for you. If we win your case through a settlement or court verdict, our fee comes as a percentage of the recovery. If we do not win, you owe us nothing.
This arrangement exists so that anyone who has been seriously injured by a defective product can get quality legal representation regardless of their financial situation. The free initial consultation also costs you nothing, and there is no obligation to move forward after speaking with us. Given the complexity of product liability cases and the resources that large automotive manufacturers have to defend themselves, having experienced legal representation on your side is essential.
How a Defective Airbag Lawsuit Works in South Carolina
Product liability cases involving defective airbags follow a structured process, and understanding each stage helps you know what to expect after you decide to move forward with a claim.
Seek Medical Attention Immediately
Your health comes first after any airbag-related injury. Some injuries, particularly internal chest damage, eye trauma, and chemical exposure effects, may worsen over time if left untreated.
Getting prompt medical care also creates a documented medical record that links your injuries directly to the airbag failure. Insurance companies and defense attorneys will scrutinize any gap between the incident and your first treatment visit, using it to argue that your injuries were not caused by the defective product.
Preserve the Vehicle and Airbag Components
After a defective airbag injury, it is important not to have the vehicle repaired or the airbag replaced before the components are examined. The physical airbag, inflator, sensors, and vehicle data are critical evidence.
Your attorney can arrange for the vehicle and all components to be preserved and inspected by a qualified automotive engineer or product safety expert. If the vehicle is totaled and in a salvage yard, prompt action is needed to prevent the evidence from being destroyed before it can be examined.
Contact a Greenville Defective Airbag Lawyer
Reaching out to an attorney early in the process helps protect your rights before key evidence disappears or deadlines approach. A lawyer experienced in defective airbag cases will know what evidence to gather, which experts to involve, and which parties should be named in the claim.
Early legal involvement also stops direct contact with insurance adjusters and corporate representatives who may try to obtain statements that limit your recovery. Your attorney manages all communication on your behalf from this point forward.
Conduct a Full Investigation
Your attorney will launch a thorough investigation into the airbag failure. This includes reviewing the vehicle history, checking for any open recalls, analyzing the airbag components with engineering experts, and obtaining the event data recorder information from the vehicle.
The investigation also looks into whether the airbag model involved has a history of failures reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). NHTSA complaint data and recall records can be powerful evidence that the manufacturer knew or should have known about the defect before your injury occurred.
File the Claim and Negotiate
Once the evidence is gathered, your attorney will file a formal product liability claim against the responsible parties. In many cases, a demand letter is sent first outlining the evidence, the injuries, and the compensation being sought.
Negotiations with manufacturers and their insurers can take time, particularly in cases involving large automotive companies with legal teams. Your Greenville defective airbag lawyer will handle all negotiations and advise you on whether any settlement offer fairly compensates your full range of losses before you agree to anything.
Go to Trial if Necessary
If the responsible parties refuse to offer a fair settlement, your attorney will be prepared to take the case to trial in Greenville County or the appropriate South Carolina court. Filing a lawsuit does not mean the case automatically goes to trial, as many cases settle during the litigation process.
Your attorney will handle every aspect of the court proceedings, including filing motions, presenting expert testimony, and arguing your case before the judge or jury. The goal throughout is to secure the maximum possible compensation for your injuries and losses.
The Takata Airbag Recall and What It Means for South Carolina Drivers
The Takata airbag recall is one of the largest automotive safety recalls in history, affecting tens of millions of vehicles across numerous manufacturers. Takata’s airbag inflators were found to rupture explosively during deployment, sending metal shrapnel into the vehicle cabin. The defect caused dozens of deaths and hundreds of injuries worldwide, and vehicles with these inflators were still on South Carolina roads years into the recall process.
If you own a vehicle that was subject to the Takata recall and were injured before a remedy was applied, you may have a valid product liability claim even if the recall was already announced. A recall notice does not eliminate liability for past injuries, and manufacturers who failed to act quickly enough to remove dangerous products from the road can still be held accountable. You can check your vehicle’s recall status through the NHTSA website using your VIN, and a defective airbag attorney in Greenville can review whether your injury qualifies for a claim.
South Carolina Product Liability Law and Defective Airbags
South Carolina recognizes three main theories of product liability that apply directly to defective airbag claims. A manufacturing defect claim argues that the specific airbag in your vehicle was produced incorrectly, even if the overall design was sound. A design defect claim argues that the entire airbag model was inherently unsafe as designed, making every unit potentially dangerous. A failure to warn claim argues that the manufacturer did not provide adequate warning about known risks associated with the airbag system.
Under South Carolina law, injured consumers do not need to prove that the manufacturer acted negligently. Strict liability principles apply, meaning that if the product was defective and unreasonably dangerous when it left the manufacturer’s control, the manufacturer can be held liable for resulting harm regardless of how careful they claim to have been. This is an important distinction that makes product liability claims more accessible to injured consumers than traditional negligence claims.
Frequently Asked Questions About Defective Airbag Claims in Greenville
Can I file a claim if my airbag was under a recall but I had not yet gotten it repaired?
Yes, you may still be able to file a claim even if a recall was in place. Manufacturers have a responsibility to notify owners promptly and provide timely repairs. If the recall process was slow, the notification was inadequate, or parts were not available, the manufacturer or dealership may still be liable for injuries that occurred before the remedy was applied. A Greenville defective airbag lawyer can review the recall timeline and your specific situation to determine your options.
What if my airbag injury happened during a crash caused by another driver?
You may have two separate claims: one against the at-fault driver for causing the crash, and one against the airbag manufacturer for the injuries the defective airbag caused or made worse. South Carolina law allows you to pursue both, and an experienced attorney can help manage both claims simultaneously to make sure you recover full compensation from every responsible party.
How do I know if my airbag was defective versus just failing to deploy for another reason?
This is determined through expert analysis of the airbag components, the vehicle’s event data recorder, and the crash circumstances. An automotive engineering expert can examine the inflator, sensor data, and deployment records to determine whether the airbag performed within design specifications or whether a defect caused the failure. Your attorney will arrange for this analysis as part of building your case.
Does it matter how old my vehicle is?
Vehicle age can affect some aspects of a defective airbag claim, but it does not automatically bar recovery. If the airbag was defective when the vehicle was sold and the defect caused your injury, the manufacturer may still be liable regardless of the vehicle’s age. South Carolina’s three-year statute of limitations under S.C. Code § 15-3-530 typically runs from the date of the injury, not the date the vehicle was manufactured.
What if the manufacturer says the airbag met all federal safety standards?
Meeting minimum federal safety standards does not necessarily protect a manufacturer from liability under South Carolina product liability law. If the product was still unreasonably dangerous despite meeting those standards, or if the standards themselves were insufficient to prevent the defect, the manufacturer can still be held responsible. Courts evaluate whether the product was safe enough for ordinary consumers, not just whether it cleared a regulatory threshold.
Contact a Greenville Defective Airbag Lawyer Today
Defective airbag injuries are serious, and the legal cases that follow them are among the most complex in personal injury law. Going up against large automotive manufacturers without experienced legal help puts you at a significant disadvantage, especially when your medical bills, lost income, and long-term recovery are on the line.
South Carolina Personal Injury Attorneys LLC represents injured people in Greenville and across Upstate South Carolina in defective airbag and product liability cases. Call us today at (864) 990-0904 for a free, no-obligation consultation, or fill out our online contact form and a member of our team will reach out right away. You pay nothing unless we win your case.