Counterfeit Airbags A Serious Issue
The issue of retailers and unwary owners installing counterfeit airbags into their vehicles has become such an issue in the USA that the “Counterfeit Airbag Bill ” has been passed in the House Of Representatives. The Bill code named H 1476 can see fines up to $75000 and 20 years in prison for serious offences. For several years now many media channels and organisations have been publicising the increased use of airbags that are just not up to the job and the dangerous consequences it can have and how it can be a killer. Thousand of cars have been checked in the USA in a safety process to ensure only components that are built to the correct specification are installed.
Other Manufactures Are Catching On
Manufacturers have also done their own campaigns including Hyundai’s safety message we blogged about previously. Those worries are not being felt back across here in the UK, a more and more people are buying what they think are good quality aftermarket airbag copies off the internet. Recently Auto Express reported of arrests being made in Dorset by the City of London Police regarding hundreds of fake airbags being sold for around half the OEM retail price of the genuine article. They are urging all buyers to check their vehicles so see what version has been fitted. The fake airbags seized from this arrest are now safely in a Ministry of Defence storage facility.
Just The Start Of A Long Investigation
The worry is that this arrest is only one of many individuals of companies selling potentially lifesaving equipment that are just not fit for purpose. So we can see this as an ongoing investigation with more revelations being discovered in the future.