Takata Seat Belt Buckle Recall - Defective Buckles Can Open & Release During Wreck Causing Injury & Death. Talk to Seat Belt Lawyer

TAKATA SEAT BELT BUCKLE RECALL - DEFECTIVE BUCKLES CAN OPEN & RELEASE DURING WRECK

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Takata seat belt buckles manufactured by Takata Corporation were used in nearly in all the FRONT seats and some BACK seats of nine million cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUV) between 1986 and 1991. On May 23, 1995 the Takata seat belt recall was announced that over eight million vehicles seat belt buckles were to be replaced or repaired under a voluntary safety recall campaign conducted by Honda, Mazda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Daihatsu, Ford, Subaru, Suzuki, Isuzu, General Motors, Geo, Chrysler, and U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA). The investigation revealed that the Takata buckles' release buttons have broken or cracked rendering it in a dangerous condition. If the buckles' release button cracks or breaks off, then the buckle may false latch, inadvertently unlatch, fail under a load, partially unlatch , become inoperative and not latch at all.

Takata Seat Belt Buckle Injuries & Death

Due to the fact that many of the victims of the Takata buckles suffer serious head injuries or they are killed in the wreck or rollover, their sworn testimony of seat belt usage immediately prior is difficult or even impossible to obtain, and must be pursued from eye witnesses, the physical evidence, medical records and/or death certificates. Also the investigating officer many times incorrectly assumes that the person was not wearing a belt, since the person is found after the accident in an un-belted position or ejected from the vehicle itself. Many times if the investigating officer would look at other evidence of belt usage, and understood the nature of the defect then many times the police report would correctly reflect the correct belt usage. Such evidence can include lacerations or bruising of the upper torso indicating the the interaction of the torso and the unsecured(unlatched shoulder belt) during the collision, torn and loaded seatbelt webbing at buckle and the D-Ring indicating loading at the point of the impact. Loading of the belt is not always present, especially in cases where the buckle was falsely latched and released upon a slight force of energy.

The resulting injuries to the previously belted front seat occupants can greatly accelerate due to no restraint system to prevent the person from impacting the dashboard, windshield, roof pillar (roof support), steering wheel, or even being ejected, (especially in rollovers). Such injuries can vary from severe head injuries, spinal cord injuries (paraplegia and quadriplegia) and even death.

Takata Seat Belt Buckle-The Defect

When the buckle is working correctly as designed, the latch plate (male) is fully inserted into the buckle (female) and then with the assistance of a spring, a spring loaded latch rotates into the the hole in the latch plate. The lock plate then slides forward to lock the latch into its secure position. To unlatch, the red button is depressed, which slides away and re-rotates the lock plate and exposes the opening(hole) in the latch plate. Then as the latch rotates up, the hole in the latch plate slides over the projections in the buckle housing. Then the spring loaded ejector pushes the latch plate out of the buckle. The problem happens when the latch plate slides over the projections on the buckle housing, it can wear it, catch it or hang it up. The design of the buckle actually encourages this hang up on the buckle housing. Additionally, the design of the spring pushes the latch plate into the hole of the latch plate. When the push button is then depressed, the force on the spring vanishes to nothing, allowing the latch plate to further hang up in the housing instead of being pushed out of this area of the buckle, where it can hang up on the sides or edges of the latch plate.

Takata Recall--Vehicles & Manufacturers

Note: All below listed vehicles have the Recalled Takata Buckle in the FRONT outboard seating positions, unless noted otherwise.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured or died as a result of a defective Takata seat belt buckle then you may have a legal action against the Takata Corporation and/or the automobile manufacturer of the vehicle. Willis Law Firm is very familiar with this problem and has previously battled with many of the auto and seat belt manufacturers concerning these defective seat belts and other design issues. Talk to a Board Certified Personal Injury Trial Lawyer certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Call Toll Free 1-800-883-9858 or fill out this Free Seat Belt Lawsuit Evaluation Form

PLEASE NOTE: The statements and information provided on this web site are for the informational purposes only. This law firm is not affiliated in any way with any trademark owner. The use of any trademarks on this site is for product identification and information purposes only. This webpage is provided to you to assist in information about seat belt injuries, seatbelt deaths, seat belt defects, rear seat or center seat lap only belt injury, lawsuits, seat belt buckle failure, buckle opening, NHTSA recall, torn webbing, seat belt recalls, seatbelt retractors, plastic buckle housing defects, problems with the tall end release buttons on the Generation 3 or Gen 3 seat belt buckle button on some Chrysler vehicles, lap belt injury, excessive slack in belt webbing, automatic belt injuries,and other seat belt defects and failures.This site is not intended to provide legal advice to the reader and NO attorney-client relationship shall be deemed to arise from the receipt this page and/or its associated pages or any oral or e-mail communication to or from with the Willis Law Firm. There will be NO lawsuits filed, claims made, letters or phone calls made for a prospective client, until that person is represented by the firm. An attorney client relationship only arises after the attorney and client have signed a written attorney client contract.

Mr. Willis is licensed attorney in New York and Texas. He is a Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Lawyer, certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Read more about Board Certification, Click Here. Principle office is Houston, Texas.

Mr. Willis has represented clients in personal injury, auto accident, seat belt defects, suv rollover, van & truck rollovers and other product liability and negligence cases from across the United States, including clients from Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin & West Virginia.

Further, any statement or reference to past personal injury, products liability or other lawsuits, settlements or verdicts should NOT be relied upon in one's own case or in your decision on which law firm to hire. All client's cases, facts, injuries, damages, venues and lawsuits are different and there is NO way to predict the outcome of a particular case, verdict of a jury or judge or the strength of a case before a judge, jury or the appellate court system. The client is responsible for all of their own medical expenses. All cases are handled on a contingent fee basis. NO attorneys fees or case costs charged to client, unless a recovery is made for the client. Often in very serious and catastrophic injury and death cases Mr. Willis may associate with another products liability attorney as co-counsel and in other matters, the case may be referred. In cases where a legal matter is referred, Mr. Willis will continue to maintain joint responsibility with the handling attorney or lead counsel and actively monitor the progress and development of the case. Due to his 22+ years of experience in personal injury and products liability cases, Mr. Willis will often continue to assist in working with the hired experts and engineers and in research of the defective product or other related legal matters in the case.