Written question asked by Douglas French (Conservative), in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 26 November 1996. It was answered by John Bowis (Conservative) on Tuesday, 26 November 1996 on behalf of the Department of Transport.

Dept of Transport

Question: What conclusions he has reached about the safety of airbags in passenger vehicles.

Answer: Mr. French: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what conclusion she has reached about the safety of air bags in passenger vehicles; and if he will make a statement. [5571] Mr. Bowis: Air bags can supplement the protection given by seat belts in severe frontal collisions but seat belts remain the key safety feature in these and a much wider variety of accidents. However, evidence from the United States, where the seat belt wearing rate is low compared with the UK, continues to show that injuries can be caused when an occupant is too close to an airbag when it deploys. This highlights two points: the importance of wearing a seat belt; the extreme danger of using a rearfacing child restraint in a front passenger seat where an airbag is fitted In an accident, the inflating air bag can strike the child seat with such force that the child will almost certainly receive serious or fatal head injuries. The motor industry has agreed to label cars to alert motorists to this danger and we are continuing to press for this action to be as effective as possible. The situation is being kept under review.

Secondary information