Defective airbags installed on various models of some car brands require urgent replacement. However, procedures are delayed, and drivers are forced to choose between being left without a car indefinitely or continuing to risk their own lives.
On January 24, 2023, 24-year-old Kyriakos Oksinos died on Griva Digeni Avenue in Engomi. An examination showed that the death was not due to a collision, but due to a defective airbag from Takata. The chemicals they contain deteriorate over time and cause the airbags to pop out with such force that can seriously injure or even kill the driver.
Takata cushions were installed on a large number of models, and the campaign to replace them became truly worldwide. The presence of a dangerous airbag can be checked on the website of the car manufacturer. To do this, you will need to enter your 17-digit Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). In the registration certificates of Cypriot cars, it appears in the second line, immediately below the registration number of the car.
The Cyprus Mail publication studied how the Cyprus representative office of Citroen is coping with the problem. In 2020, the company's head office launched a global recall campaign for defective airbags. Owners of C3 and DS3 models in Cyprus have been asked to make an appointment for immediate replacement of the faulty equipment. However, the campaign is moving rather slowly.
Peter, a Citroën C3 owner from Paralimni, received a letter from Citroën Cyprus last year saying his car was subject to a recall due to an airbag fault and that he would be contacted to arrange a replacement. However, in January 2024, the company representing the interests of Citroen in Cyprus changed. The official distributor was CIC Automasters. On June 6, 2024, Peter received another letter stating that he must stop operating his vehicle immediately due to the risk of serious injury or even death. Customers were provided with a phone number where they could make an appointment for an airbag replacement.
Peter called this number in June. The operator said there was a three-week waiting list for a replacement and he would be contacted later. Since then, the man has not been called back. Theoretically, he should have taken his car to an official service center and wait for a replacement to be made. In practice, this meant that Peter had to be left without personal vehicles for an indefinite period.
Cyprus Mail emailed CIC Automasters with a number of questions. The company's central service department responded that "no delays have been observed in the procedure followed by the company" and that replacement of faulty airbags "depends on the response of the owners."
The company also recalled that, based on the manufacturer's instructions, it asks owners to stop driving cars with defective equipment.
The text was prepared based on materials from Cyprus Mail
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