Long Island Airbag
Injury Lawyer

How It Happens

How Airbag Injuries Happen on Long Island Roads

When crash sensors detect sufficient deceleration force, the airbag inflator burns a chemical propellant — typically sodium azide — generating nitrogen gas that inflates the bag from zero to full deployment in approximately 30 milliseconds. Frontal airbags inflate at speeds exceeding 200 mph. Modern vehicles contain multiple types: frontal airbags (driver and passenger), side-curtain airbags (roofline, head protection in side impacts), side torso airbags (chest and abdomen), and knee airbags (lower dash). Each type presents distinct injury risks when it malfunctions.

Airbag injuries arise from two distinct causes. Injuries from normal deployment occur because the force required to cushion a crash occupant also creates risk of burns, impact injuries, and acoustic trauma. Injuries from defective deployment occur when the system malfunctions — deploying in minor impacts, failing to deploy, or rupturing and spraying metal shrapnel. The Takata recall — the largest automotive recall in history — demonstrated that inflator manufacturing defects can cause explosive ruptures at lethal velocities.

On Long Island’s roads — the Long Island Expressway, the Southern State Parkway, Route 110, Sunrise Highway, Hempstead Turnpike, and countless local intersections in Nassau and Suffolk County — airbag injuries occur in collisions involving cars, SUVs, trucks, and commercial vehicles. You may have claims against the at-fault driver, the vehicle manufacturer, and the airbag supplier. As an experienced Long Island car accident lawyer, our firm handles both driver liability and product defect dimensions of your claim.

Types of Airbag Injuries

Airbag injuries span a wide spectrum depending on the type of airbag, the severity and direction of the crash, the occupant’s position and size, and whether the airbag functioned as designed or malfunctioned.

Burns

Chemical burns from sodium azide propellant gas cause caustic burns to the face, eyes, nose, and throat. Thermal burns result from combustion heat and hot gas venting through the bag fabric. Exposure to sodium azide warrants immediate medical evaluation for systemic toxicity.

Facial Fractures and Broken Nose

The inflating airbag can fracture the nose, cheekbones, orbital bones, and mandible — particularly when an occupant is leaning forward or when deployment occurs in a minor collision. Facial fractures requiring surgical reconstruction produce permanent disfigurement qualifying as a serious injury under Insurance Law §5102(d).

Eye Injuries

Eye injuries include corneal abrasions, chemical burns to the conjunctiva and cornea, traumatic cataracts, and in severe cases traumatic detachment of the retina — a medical emergency requiring immediate surgery to prevent permanent vision loss. Defective inflator rupture cases add the risk of metal fragments striking the eye directly.

Hearing Loss

Airbag deployment generates approximately 170 decibels — comparable to a close-range gunshot. Immediate, permanent audiological injuries include high-frequency sensorineural hearing loss, tinnitus, and sudden deafness. Permanent hearing loss satisfies the “permanent loss of use” category under Insurance Law §5102(d).

Neck, Chest, and Abdominal Injuries

Frontal airbag deployment force against a restrained occupant can cause cervical disc herniation, rib and sternal fractures, and blunt cardiac contusion. These injuries must be documented to satisfy Insurance Law §5102(d) for a tort recovery. For further context, see our page for an experienced Long Island car accident lawyer.

Abrasions from airbag fabric produce lacerations and scarring on the face, forearms, and hands that can qualify as significant disfigurement under the serious injury threshold.

Defective Airbag Claims in New York (Product Liability)

New York recognizes strict products liability under Codling v. Paglia, 32 NY2d 330 (1973): a manufacturer is liable for defective product injuries without proof of negligence. The plaintiff must show the product was defective, the defect existed when it left the manufacturer’s control, and the defect proximately caused the injury. Airbag defect claims fall into three categories: manufacturing defects (product departs from intended design — the Takata recall is the defining example); design defects (entire product line unreasonably dangerous — deployment threshold too low, excess force, inadequate occupant protection); and failure to warn (inadequate disclosure of known risks to out-of-position occupants or children).

The Takata airbag recall — the largest automotive recall in history, affecting over 100 million vehicles globally — involved ammonium nitrate-based propellant that ruptured inflators under heat and humidity cycling, spraying metal fragments into the vehicle interior. If your vehicle was subject to a Takata or other open recall never repaired, that is direct evidence of a known, unremediated defect under 49 USC §30118. For more on defective vehicle accident claims in New York, see our dedicated practice area page.

Regular Negligence vs. Product Liability — Dual Claims

Airbag injury cases frequently support two independent theories of liability pursued simultaneously. Driver negligence: the driver who caused the crash may have violated VTL §1180 (unreasonable speed), run a red light, failed to yield, or committed another traffic violation that establishes negligence per se. Manufacturer product liability operates independently: even if the driver was at fault, the airbag manufacturer or vehicle maker can be strictly liable for injuries that resulted from a product defect beyond what the crash alone would have caused. New York courts recognize the “crashworthiness” doctrine — a manufacturer is liable for enhanced injuries caused by a design defect even though it did not cause the underlying accident.

Under CPLR §1411, fault is apportioned among all defendants. Multiple defendants are jointly and severally liable for economic damages under CPLR Article 14, allowing each defendant to be held responsible for the full amount of economic damages regardless of their percentage of fault. Working with an experienced Long Island car accident lawyer who handles product liability is essential to pursuing every available theory.

No-Fault Insurance and Serious Injury Threshold

New York’s no-fault system under Insurance Law §5102 entitles all car accident victims to Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits from their own insurer — up to $50,000 in medical bills and 80% of gross lost wages. A no-fault claim must be filed within 30 days of the accident. To pursue a tort claim for non-economic damages (pain and suffering), a plaintiff must establish a “serious injury” under Insurance Law §5102(d): fracture; significant disfigurement; permanent loss of use of a body organ or member; permanent consequential limitation of use; significant limitation of use of a body function; or the 90/180-day category. Airbag injuries frequently satisfy multiple categories: facial fractures (“fracture”), permanent hearing loss (“permanent loss of use”), and burn scarring (“significant disfigurement”). Our firm works with treating physicians, audiologists, ophthalmologists, and plastic surgeons to document every injury against each threshold category.

What Compensation Can You Recover?

Airbag injury victims who satisfy the serious injury threshold may recover two categories of damages: economic and non-economic.

Economic damages include all past and future medical expenses (emergency care, facial reconstruction surgery, retinal reattachment surgery, cochlear implant surgery, physical therapy, medications, future treatment and equipment); hearing aids and audiological devices; past and future lost wages and lost earning capacity; and all out-of-pocket costs. Non-economic damages compensate for pain and suffering, physical disability, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress, and loss of consortium. New York does not cap non-economic damages, and airbag injuries that cause permanent disfigurement, hearing loss, or vision impairment can warrant substantial non-economic awards. In cases of egregious manufacturer conduct — such as concealing a known fatal defect rather than issuing a recall — punitive damages may also be available against the manufacturer.

Why Airbag Injury Cases Are Complex

Multiple defendants create complexity at every stage. The negligent driver, vehicle manufacturer, airbag module supplier, and a dealership that failed to implement an open recall may all bear liability for different portions of the plaintiff’s injuries. Apportioning causation and damages requires careful expert analysis. For context on multiple-defendant vehicle cases, see our page on defective vehicle accident claims.

Evidence preservation is uniquely critical: the airbag components, inflator, module, and EDR data must be inspected and downloaded before any repair or disposal. Strict product liability proof standards require qualified automotive engineers, materials scientists, and human factors experts. Our firm retains these experts at the outset of every investigation. Cases involving distracted driving or other negligence contributing to a defective-airbag crash require the same expert-driven approach on both the accident cause and the product defect. Federal preemption defenses — manufacturers arguing FMVSS 208 compliance preempts state tort claims — have been rejected by courts but require experienced counsel to counter.