Mercedes-Benz slammed for not recalling faulty Takata airbags

KUALA LUMPUR: Even if you are a luxury car manufacturer, the spotlight cannot spare you from abiding the compulsory safety norms. In a recent incident, the German automakers of luxury vehicles, was slammed for not responding to warnings against use of deadly airbags.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), knocked down on Mercedes-Benz and announced in a public statement that the automaker failed to initiate a compulsory recall of cars fitted with Takata airbags, that are harmful and deadly, within a required timeframe. 

Slamming down the prestigious carmaker’s image, the Australian watchdog also stated that the automaker failed to arrange for the spare parts in order to rectify the problem.

The Takata recall is one of the largest in the history of automotive industry which included 3 million cars in Australia, commenced in mid-2018 and has seen recall completion rates of up to 99.84 percent by some vehicle producers. 

More than 40 million cars are affected and at least 16 deaths are directly associated with the faulty product in the US alone. It is no less than havoc that has shaken the automotive world.

However, the ACCC alleged that in the period of June 2018 to November 2018, Mercedes-Benz did not initiate a recall for 2008-2015 C-Class models and 2010-2017 E-Class models fitted with potentially fatal Takata PSAN inflators due to unavailability of alternative spare parts.

This irresponsible attitude exposed owners of Mercedes E class and C class vehicles, to serious safety hazards, claims ACCC. A court-enforceable undertaking has now been issued to the car manufacturer by ACCC to recall the affected models.

“Mercedes-Benz failed to comply with its obligations to initiate recalls under the Takata compulsory recall, potentially putting the lives of drivers and passengers at risk, and failed to inform anyone of the delay,” ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard said. 

Further adding to the cause of investigation, he said, "They had a set timeframe – there’s a process for applying or extensions and letting us know and they didn’t let us know and didn’t apply for an extension so we decided to investigate".

Out of several manufactures, Mercedes was the only one who failed to comply and apply for a short-term extension. 

The Commission understands that it is practically not possible to manufacture or arrange airbags and replace in around 21,708 vehicles, but their thrust is on owners’ safety and cannot let them drive their lives at risk.

Mercedes-Benz said it is working to develop new airbag modules "that do not use ammonium nitrate inflators" so that its cars wouldn't be affected by similar recalls in the future.

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