Should an airbag become deployed in an accident if the vehicle was hit from behind, at a fast speed?

Question

The accident was on a major interstate and the driver died from massive chest/stomack injuries that were sustained from the accident. It was a SVU that he was driving and the back end of the car was pushed all the way into the front seat and eventually caught on fire. None of the airbags deployed and really the family is not sure if they can sue Nissan or the manufacturer of the airbags. No one knows for sure without having a thorough investigation I suppose of the airbag would have saved his life, but since it was chest/stomack injuries he suffered (and he wore a seatbelt) it may have stopped him from slamming into the stearing wheel/driver side dash area. The passenger (his wife) lived but also suffered very bad neck injuries, would she be able to sue anyone for wrongful death or something similar about the airbags not deploying?

She is already in a lawsuit with person at fault (DUI case).

Answer 1

Speaking from personal experience. an airbag will not depoly if the vehicle is hit in the rear. Sensors for airbags are located in the front of the car, and they front of the car needs to be crushed a certain distance before the bags will deploy.

I was hit from behind by a 16ton Volvo truck at 60km/h and my bag didnt deploly. My vehicle was a 2002 Iveco Daily.

You may find that some modern cars with curtain type airbags that deploy from the dash, steeringwheel, seats, A pillar and the rear of the car may delpoy if the car is hit from behind, depending on where the sensors are located.

The reason for this is because a car can sustain a major rear hit and be repaired, but normally when a cars airbag is deployed the car is written off as it is quite expensive to replace and reset the sensors and bag.

Im sorry to hear that this happened to someone you know, its dreadful and I wish the family all the best.

Answer 2

No, the airbag sensors are in the front of the vehicle.  It should take a frontal impact to set them off.  Older cars with airbags may be a little more sensitive, but newer ones DEFINITELY don't go off unless there's a severe frontal collision.

Answer 3

No.................

Airbags deploy only when they might be needed to prevent serious injury.

Frontal driver and passenger airbags are designed to inflate in moderate to severe frontal crashes equivalent to hitting a solid barrier at 10-12 mph.

Some manufacturers use different inflation thresholds depending on whether people are using their safety belts.

Thresholds of 10-12 mph typically are used for unbelted occupants, but thresholds are higher — about 16 mph — for belted occupants because the belts alone are likely to provide adequate protection up to these moderate speeds.