|
IS YOUR AIRBAG JUST HOT AIR?
By Chuck Wells
Investigators of a fatal crash
in California discovered empty packs of cigarettes and other
garbage in place of the airbag in a salvaged Ford Escort. The
salvaged car was purchased by the unsuspecting consumer who died
in the crash when the airbag didn’t work. The guy who repaired
the salvaged car did the work as a second job on the side. He
said that he was “proud” of his work and that he didn’t know
that repacking an airbag (with garbage) was illegal
in
California.
An insurance company in California said that over 350 claims
involving cars which had been in collisions where found to have
fake bags.
How would you get one of these bad bags? Airbags which get wet
are no good. If you buy a car that was salvaged after a flood
(95,000 cars were damaged by flooding in Houston, Texas alone),
the airbag may not work.
At least 7,500 airbags were stolen out of cars in 2001. Thieves
sell these bags to repair shops who then charge insurance
companies full price to replace the bags. According to the
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a replacement airbag
must match up with the make, model, year, and sometimes the
month the car was made in order to be safe.
How can you make sure your airbag is working? According to the
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, when you first start
your car, the airbag indicator should come on and blink for a
few seconds and then go out. If the light fails to come on or
stays on, your airbag may be bogus. You may also want to have
the car checked by a dealer to make sure.
ALLAH WINS THE LOTTERY
El Shabazz Allah was opening his little kiosk in the Atlantic
Center mall in Brooklyn, NY when a guy came up behind him
stealing $2,000 and stabbing Allah in the back. Allah didn’t
think this was fair and someone should pay so he sued the mall
and its security company. The mall and security people said they
had no complaints of crimes in the area and besides, they had no
duty to protect Allah. Allah was awarded $4 million by the
courts.
RUNNING STOP SIGNS ISN’T THE PROBLEM
A study of crashes at stop signs revealed an interesting fact.
Most of the crashes were caused not by someone running the stop
sign, but by people who stopped and then pulled in front of
other cars.
Fewer accidents happen at intersections with 4-way stops than
just 2-way stops.
Young men and people over age 65 are found more often to be
at-fault in
these accidents.
Send Chuck
your feedback on this Article
 Request
an Auto Ins. Quote |
Home Ins. Quote |
Renters Ins. Quote
|
