At least 155,000 vehicles containing potentially deadly Takata airbags are still on Australian roads.
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With less than six months before manufacturers are expected to complete their recall of these vehicles, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is urging consumers to check if their vehicles are affected and if so book them in for replacement.
According to the latest ACCC figures on the compulsory recall, about 180,000 airbags (4.4 per cent of all airbags subject to this recall) in more than 155,000 vehicles (5.1pc of affected vehicles) are yet to be replaced.
The Takata airbag recall has affected an estimated 100 million vehicles globally and three million in Australia.
(Check ismyairbagsafe.com.au to see if your vehicle is affected).
"These airbags are extremely dangerous and have the potential to mis-deploy, sending sharp metal fragments into the vehicle cabin at high speed, with the potential to kill or seriously injure the occupants," ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard said.
"It is essential you do not ignore or delay responding to notices about the recalls from your manufacturer. If your vehicle is under active recall, please act now to arrange for a free replacement."
More than 6000 of those vehicles are so dangerous that they should not be driven at all.
These vehicles contain the highest risk "critical" airbags, and states and territories will be de-registering them to take them off our roads.
Some states and territories are also preventing re-registration of unregistered vehicles unless there is evidence that the affected airbag has been replaced.
"If your vehicle contains a "critical" airbag, you should stop driving it immediately and contact the manufacturer to arrange for it to be towed or a technician to be sent to you so the airbag can be replaced," Ms Rickard said.
Consumers who imported a vehicle directly into Australia from overseas are urged to contact the vehicle manufacturer's Australian office to see if it is affected by the recall, and those who imported a vehicle using a business in Australia should check this with the business, and arrange airbag replacements if needed.
In the past three months more than 40,000 vehicles have had their airbags replaced despite the pandemic and a further 2250 vehicles have been identified as no longer on the road.
On average, more than 3100 airbags have been replaced each day since the compulsory recall began in March 2018.
"There are only six months left for manufacturers to meet their replacement obligations, and while the compulsory recall is progressing well, it is important to get these remaining deadly airbags off our roads," Ms Rickard said.
"Checking ismyairbagsafe.com.au to see if your vehicle is affected, and getting the airbag replaced if it is, is an essential step to preventing more deaths and injuries."