Car manufacturers are urging vehicle owners in outer metropolitan suburbs to take immediate action to identify and urgently rectify faulty Takata airbags.
Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries chief executive Tony Weber says more than 150,000 vehicles on Australian roads still needed to have faulty airbags rectified as part of a compulsory national recall. Many of these vehicles could be located in the outer suburbs of capital cities.
“We cannot stress enough the critical importance for vehicle owners to check if their vehicles are affected by the Takata airbag recall and to take prompt action to have faulty airbags rectified,” Mr Weber said.
“Don’t ignore manufacturer recall correspondence. You must take immediate action. A faulty Takata airbag can kill or seriously injure vehicle occupants regardless of whether they are the driver or passenger.”
Mr Weber pointed to outer suburbs of state and territory capital cities as particularly important regions for vehicle owners to promptly check the recall status of their vehicles.
“These vehicles are often used as the second or third car in a household for travel to and from work or other events in busy stop-start traffic,” he said.
“Owners may also have overlooked manufacturer correspondence urging them to have faulty airbags rectified.”
In addition to the significant safety risk of unrectified vehicles, Mr Weber said it was possible owners of vehicles who had ignored multiple requests to have a faulty airbag rectified will be confronted by registration sanctions. This could include a cancellation of registration or an inability to transfer ownership when selling.
This could be detrimental to vehicle owners in outer metropolitan suburbs who are very dependent on their vehicles for every-day travel to and from work.
Mr Weber said: “Vehicle owners can avoid having their vehicles banned from the road by checking the recall status of their vehicles and having any faulty airbags promptly rectified.”
Vehicle owners can easily check the recall status of their vehicles by using the industry’s Takata airbag recall website www.ismyairbagsafe.com.au and by taking prompt action to arrange for the free rectification of any affected vehicle. The recall status of a vehicle can also be checked by texting TAKATA to 0487 AIRBAG (247 224).
“All you need to know is a vehicle’s registration number and the state or territory of registration. A check is quick and repairs to any affected vehicle are free,” Mr Weber said.
Unregistered vehicles can also be checked by contacting the brand directly.
As of June 30, manufacturers in Australia had rectified more than 2.68 million vehicles affected by the Takata airbag recall.