Lawmakers voice frustration with pace of air bag repairs
WASHINGTON — Members of a Senate panel voiced frustration Tuesday with the pace of repairs for vehicles with defective Takata air bag inflators and urged regulators to complete work on a federal rule that would require automakers to use email and other forms of electronic communication when notifying car owners about recall campaigns.
Takata air bag inflators can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel into drivers and passengers. At least 22 people have died worldwide and more than 180 have been hurt.
A yearslong recall involves about 50 million Takata air bag inflators in the United States. To date, about 21 million defective air bags have been repaired.
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee recently asked the 19 automakers involved in the Takata recall to provide the repair rates for their vehicles.