Airbag did not deploy

I am in Alabama, and I am trying to get information on legal options available to me since the airbag did not deploy in my accident.

I am having a difficult time getting a straight answer to the first question: Should it have deployed?

Here are the accident details: I was forced off the road by another vehicle that by the way left the scence in a hurry. I was going around 60mph, when I left the road the car went into a flat spin, thank goodness it was damp and the car spun instead of flipping! The car stopped spinning and slid into a tree, trunk first. I cannot estimate the speed, but the car was totaled and the bumper was pushed under the back window, everything in the trunk was crushed and destroyed. The car was a 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix.

On the rebound from the tree my face slammed into the steering wheel, some moderate damage was done to my face and nose.


So can anyone help me here?

Thanks
Michael

[JETX]

Generally, most front air bags are set to deploy by an 'accelerometer' that is designed to detect sudden stops in forward motion and, then to trigger deployment of the front-mounted airbag (kind of like a 'tilt mechanism' in a pinball machine).

In your case, when you were in the spin, that was a side motion that wouldn't normally trigger the airbag (no more than hitting broadsided in an accident). Then, the second motion you had was in reverse, where you basically backed into a tree. Again, this would not have triggered a sudden stop from a FORWARD motion and would not have triggered the airbag. Finally, your body 'rebounded' from the backward motion and you hit the steering wheel. By this time, the motion of the vehicle had actually stopped, without sufficient forward motion of the car to deploy the airbag at all.

Bottom line... it doesn't sound like the airbag would have been expected to deploy in your accident.

[tammy8]

Have to agree that your airbag should not have had any reason to deploy. Kinda makes you wonder why they are even on vehicles, huh?

[JETX]

"Kinda makes you wonder why they are even on vehicles, huh?"

Ask anyone of the thousands of husbands, wives, brothers and sisters who's lives were saved by airbags after a FRONTAL collision. I will bet that they don't 'wonder why they are even on vehicles'!!

[tammy8]

Sorry just that in the accidents I encounter, most are not front end impacts. I think the industry needs to change the way the bags deploy to almost any accident instead of front end. Just an observation from the sidelines.

[JETX]

Tammy, sorry but your response seems to show a lack of understanding of the airbag issue....

1) A 'rear' mounted airbag is not necessary for several reasons: (a) the headrest prevents your neck injury from a severe rear impact and (b) if an airbag went off behind your head, it would break your neck.

2) A 'front' mounted airbag is intended to prevent someone from impacting on the dashboard and/or steering wheel when coming to an immediate stop from a forward motion.

3) The only remaining direction is from the side, requiring a 'side' airbag. Some car manufacturers are providing these on current models and they may increase in availablity once (if??) their value proves to be worth the high cost. (In my opinion, side impacts are not nearly as devasting as often as frontal impacts and in some cases their 'worthiness' is in question.)

[url]http://www.lemurzone.com/airbag/airbags.htm[/url]
[url]http://www.tirekick.com/dec98/safety99.htm[/url]
[url]http://www.extrication.com/coping%20sips.htm[/url]
[url]http://www.terc.org/sideairbags1.html[/url]
[url]http://www.cnn.com/TECH/9601/Route_96/01-09/car_safety/[/url]

I was recently in a car accident where while making a turn through an intersection (i was only about 1/4 the was through the turn) i was hit in the front end by a 2500 chevy truck (i have a car) my air bag did not deploy and the only thing that saved my face from hitting the steering wheel was the shoulder harness part and the rest of the seat belt. I was only going about 15 mph but was hit with enough force from the other drive to cause me to have 3 buldging disks, one herniated disk, nerve damage to the nerve in my neck and whiplash. I have always understood that air bags are set to go off with a certain amount of frontal force determined by a certain amount of speed. guess i was going too slow for my air bag to go off. I would not have expected for yours to have gone off. If you had you seat belt on i am sure that that helped to keep you from sustaining other injuries. Did you ever find out who the other driver was? have you pursued any action with that to get another car or to get your car fixed if it is fixable?