Drivers urged to take the airbag recall seriously and check their cars
Drivers are being urged not to take the largest airbag recall in automotive history lightly with over four million cars deemed a serious threat on Australian roads.
The federal government on Wednesday took the unprecedented step of ordering the recall of cars fitted with the faulty Takata airbags which has sparked confusion among drivers unsure if they need to return their vehicle to its dealership.
“What is critical is that motorists take this advice seriously, there is an element of owner responsibility if you don’t receive a notice, check your vehicle,” Royal Automobile Club of Queensland's head of technical and safety policy Steve Spalding told News Corp.
Mr Spalding reiterated the size of the problem and the issues drivers may face for years to come due to the dealerships' stretched workload.
“It’s a staggering number of cars affected and dealerships are already running close to capacity, they don’t have staff sitting around doing nothing," he said.
“In some regional towns they might not have a dealership nearby... it’s a very big problem for consumers and dealerships.”
NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury echoed Mr Spalding's sentiments saying the recall is long overdue.
"It has absolutely taken far too long to reach this stage," he said.
"When you have airbags killing people globally, that is something that needs to be addressed immediately."
Mr Khoury also urged drivers to refrain from sitting on the issue and to actively approach carmakers to find out if their vehicle has a faulty airbag.
The widespread issue lies with the airbags' propelling mechanism, which becomes defective when exposed to high levels of moisture.
It can also scatter shards of metal towards the driver and passengers when activated.
A total of four million vehicles in Australia have been affected by the faulty airbags. In 2017, 2.7 million vehicles were voluntarily recalled, and 1.7 million had their airbags replaced.
The 2.3 million vehicles announced in a compulsory recall on Wednesday include the outstanding one million cars that did not have their airbags voluntarily replaced.
The problem have been linked to 23 deaths worldwide, including at least one in Australia.
The voluntary re-call list was redistributed by the ACCC on Wednesday morning for all vehicles idenfied as potentially faulty, but experts warn the number of models effected may rise once car makers identify further car types impacted.
