Airbag Defect Class Action Lawsuits

Girard Gibbs LLP has achieved settlements in several class action lawsuits involving malfunctions in safety sensors, which activate or deactivate airbags in vehicles depending on the size of the passenger.

In response to evidence that the impact of inflating airbags can potentially cause injury to children, the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard was amended in 1996 to incorporate standards for advanced airbags in vehicles. To comply with these standards, many vehicle manufacturers began implementing systems to deactivate airbags in the front passenger seat when the presence of a child is detected. These systems often use a sensor mechanism to determine if the passenger is below a certain weight threshold.

Defects in a sensor’s design may cause the sensor to function improperly and deactivate the airbags when the seat is occupied by an adult whose weight falls above the weight threshold. Some vehicle manufacturers have failed to notify consumers or provide an adequate remedy. Girard Gibbs has successfully represented consumers in class action lawsuits, involving vehicle manufacturers’ concealment of defective nature occupant detection sensors.

BMW 5-Series Class Action Lawsuit

Girard Gibbs filed a class action lawsuit against BMW of North America, alleging that the “seat occupation detection system” in certain 2004-2005 5-Series BMW vehicles was defective. Girard Gibbs negotiated a settlement, providing for free reprogramming of the seat occupation detection system to class members and a limited waiver of warranty mileage limit.

Hyundai Elantra Class Action Lawsuit

Girard Gibbs achieved a nationwide settlement in their class action lawsuit brought on behalf of Hyundai Elantra owners, granting free reprogramming of the allegedly defective occupant classification system for class members.

Important Note: This summary is intended to provide a basic overview of the typical types of auto defect cases handled by our firm. It is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

Why Girard Gibbs LLP?

Girard Gibbs is a national litigation firm specializing in securities litigation, consumer class actions and complex business litigation. Girard Gibbs' managing partner Daniel Girard was voted one of Northern California's Super Lawyers in 2007, 2008, and 2009 by Law & Politics, recognizing him as one of the top 5-percent of attorneys practicing in Northern California.