Washington, DC — November 30, 2015 — Earlier this month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that it would impose a record fine on Takata after the massive recalls following concern over its potentially explosive airbag inflators. More recently, the organization has sought out possible applicants to work as a monitor as described in a Consent Order and Coordinated Remedy Order.
Though the recalls have affected 12 manufacturers, including Toyota, Ford and Nissan, the brand with the largest amount of models at high risk is Honda, which claims to have fixed 44 percent of its recalled vehicle population.
Honda vehicles have also been involved in the accidents the faulty inflators have caused. Most recently, a Utah woman named Randi Johnson sued the company for an explosion that damaged her vocal cords this September. This incident involved a 2003 Honda Civic: Honda reportedly has nine models at the highest levels of risk, dating back as far as model year 2001. There have been eight fatal accidents traced to these inflators so far.
Late last month, the New York Times reported on a different Honda recall centered on hundreds of thousands of Accords. Improper sensors in these vehicles could activate airbags if doors were slammed too hard: complaints surrounding this issue reportedly stretch as far back as last year.
After Honda, the manufacturer with the highest number of affected models is Fiat Chrysler, responsible for seven models at the highest level of risk. As CNBC notes, Priority One vehicle owner demand has to be met by March 31 of next year.
