Another perspective on the airbag issue...

Mark Twain might have rephrased his quote of Disraeli to say that in the case of airbags, a category needs to be added to the three types of lies (lies, damn lies and statistics). In the case of airbags, there are also lies supported by statistics.

Only those accidents The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's  Special Crash Investigation Division (SCI) decides airbags were definitely the cause of death count toward the number of lives lost because of airbags. But how many accidents are actually investigated by the SCI? this is where the statistics get suspect.

Unfortunately, since 1988, the Special Crash Investigation unit has only investigated about 50 cases per year because of cost constraints. Not only that, but they limit their investigations of airbag-caused deaths only to cases where the newest airbag technology is involved or other factors were present that SCI wanted to investigate to help SRS system and airbag manufacturers improve their systems. This makes sense if you realize the purpose of the SCI is to help manufacturers develop better technologies. 

Unfortunately, there are many thousands of accidents that are not investigated by SCI,  and so are not counted in official government statistics on airbag induced deaths. 

On the other hand, there are no cases where a person has been proven to be saved by an airbag. The statistical estimates used to show the number of "lives saved" are purely hypothetical estimates.

In addition, no numbers are available to measure the frequency of severe, disabling injuries.  Even those who today are quadriplegics for life because of their airbags or who live in constant pain are not counted.

Each time you hear some official quote on TV the number of airbag deaths, they never mention these facts. People believe that they are safe because there are only a few hundred deaths reported. 

Why is the information about the danger of airbags so obscured? Today, there are more than 130 million cars on the road with airbags. They were mandated by Congress long before they were safe. Even today, as NHTSA and others assure the public that they are better off with airbags, there is a mandate that the manufacturers develop "Advanced Airbags" over the next several years. These will be able to meet the new safety requirements mandated by Congress to make them safer for a whole family rather than only the standard sized male. Until then, children, shorter women and the elderly will remain in danger when riding in front of an active airbag. If the true numbers were reported, there would be a tremendous outcry. 

But nobody in the government seems willing to stand up and admit that Congress passed a law like this before airbags were safe. Instead, its much easier to manipulate the statistics than to face a public that has been forced to buy unsafe safety devices for the last 14 years. 

How did we get into this mess? There is a photo of Ralph Nader showing Congress how from now on nobody would have to wear seatbelts and everyone would be safe in front of these new, miracle airbags. Congress passed the requirements for airbags into law before there was information to prove these assertions.  In fact. Lee Iacocca, who opposed airbags because they were untested finally caved in after highly publicized attacks from Nader and his assistant Joan Claybrook (later head of NHTSA) and agreed to install airbags in all Chrysler cars. 

Most people believe officials and reporters who repeat statistics and unquestioned statements like: "On the whole, airbags have saved more lives than they've taken." Or " the government wouldn't require airbags unless they were good for me"

If there were no federal mandate stating that all manufacturers have to put airbags in all passenger vehicles, it is unlikely that you could get them at all. There would be far too much liability for any manufacturer to install or even to offer as an option an unsafe and unproven technology that could kill or severely injure people.

If airbags are made safe one day, which means meeting all the requirements of "Advanced Airbags" then they should be mandated. But until then, anyone should have the option of turning off their airbags.