Considering company vehicles are some of the newest on the roads, it’s a fair assumption that they are not fitted with faulty Takata airbags that need to be replaced. Though as a Fleet Manager, are you sure that none of the vehicles in your fleet are affected? And how are you managing the replacement if required?
The Takata airbag problem has been acknowledged for some time and it mainly applies to vehicles built prior to 2012. So you may think that none of your vehicles are impacted because they are only a few years old. But this isn’t an issue that can be ignored with 24 deaths and 266 injuries reported worldwide.
You can check the older vehicles in your fleet by clicking here.
Last week ACCC has released comprehensive state-by-state data detailing recall rates for deadly Takata airbags, and the first data detailing progress made by various vehicle manufacturers in removing them from Australian cars.
| Total airbags replaced | 2.1 million |
|---|---|
| Total airbags to be replaced | 1.8 million |
| Unreplaceable airbags | 180,000 |
| Total vehicles remaining | 1.6 million |
| Total vehicles rectified | 13.million |
| Unreplaceable airbags | 150,000 |
| Airbags to be replaced (excluding Alpha) | Alpha airbags to be replaced | |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 500,606 | 5,174 |
| Victoria | 448,357 | 4,532 |
| Queensland | 326,168 | 2,505 |
| Western Australia | 162,494 | 1,156 |
| South Australia | 103,390 | 617 |
| Tasmania | 39,196 | 244 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 30,103 | 241 |
| Northern Territory | 11,452 | 117 |
| Other | 145,261 | 4,693 |
The ACCC says one year since the ACCC started overseeing the Takata airbag recall, 1.8 million potentially deadly airbags still need replacing as part of a compulsory recall that will run until 2020. Over the past 12 months, 1.1 million faulty Takata airbags have been replaced in around 930,000 vehicles.
Most of the manufacturers selling large volumes of vehicles to fleets (except Kia) are impacted by this recall. Some have achieved a significant number of replacement while other have only just started since 1st July 2018.
This table shows completion rates for manufacturers commencing recall action prior to 1 July 2018
| Vehicles rectified | Vehicles to be rectified | |
|---|---|---|
| BMW | 21,635 | 184,153 |
| Ferrari | 246 | 948 |
| Fiat Chrysler | 16,525 | 20,095 |
| Honda | 324,938 | 112,027 |
| Honda Motorbikes | 593 | 62 |
| Mazda | 246,152 | 46,788 |
| Mitsubishi | 108,653 | 69,370 |
| Nissan | 49,042 | 245,376 |
| Subaru | 121,749 | 161,222 |
| Toyota (including Lexus) | 390,572 | 192,184 |
This table shows completion rates for manufacturers commencing recall action from 1 July 2018
| Vehicles rectified | Vehicles to be rectified | |
|---|---|---|
| Audi | 0 | 40,106 |
| Citroën | 0 | 3,292 |
| Ford | 18,424 | 88,977 |
| GM Holden | 2,544 | 328,445 |
| Jaguar Land Rover | 0 | 17,454 |
| McLaren | 0 | 331 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 1,232 | 116,941 |
| Skoda | 0 | 17,605 |
| Tesla | 0 | 1,263 |
| Volkswagen | 0 | 102,078 |
