Toyota Airbag Lawsuit Alleges Failure To Deploy Resulted in Permanent Injuries

Lawsuit claims a Toyota RAV4 airbag failed to deploy during a severe crash, allowing woman’s head to strike the steering wheel.

A Minnesota woman has filed a product liability lawsuit alleging that a defective steering wheel airbag in her 2019 Toyota RAV4 failed to deploy during a head-on crash, leaving her with permanent injuries that could have been prevented if the safety systems had functioned properly.

The complaint (PDF) was originally brought by Whitney Jo Dahlin on February 2 in Minnesota District Court, naming Toyota Motor North America Inc., Chester Berg Motors Inc. and Chester Berg Toyota as defendants. It was later removed to the U.S. District Court for Minnesota on February 20.

Airbags are standard automotive safety features that rapidly deploy in a crash to create a protective buffer between occupants and hard interior surfaces like the steering wheel, dashboard or windows. Functioning as part of a vehicle’s supplemental restraint system, they work in conjunction with seat belts to help lessen the risk of serious head and upper body injuries.

Due to their role in crash safety, when airbags are defective or fail to deploy, serious injuries to drivers and occupants may occur. A U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) warning issued last month, announced an investigation into certain illegal airbag inflator devices manufactured in China, after reports of the products rupturing during crashes, leading to at least eight deaths and two severe injuries.

Failures involving airbag inflators have previously led to one of the largest automotive safety crises in history. More than 67 million Takata airbags were recalled in the United States after regulators discovered that certain inflators could rupture during deployment, blasting metal shrapnel into vehicle cabins. The defect was linked to at least 11 deaths and hundreds of injuries in the U.S., prompting multiple Takata airbag recall lawsuits, and ultimately driving Takata into bankruptcy.

According to Dahlin’s complaint, she leased a 2019 Toyota RAV4 in January 2020 from Chester Berg Motors, a Toyota dealership in Bemidji, Minnesota. She later purchased the vehicle in December 2023.

The lawsuit states that on March 29, 2024, Dahlin was driving to work when she experienced an epileptic seizure and lost control of her vehicle. The RAV4 veered off the roadway, crossed the shoulder and a field, and then crashed nearly head-on into a pine tree, with the impact centered on the front of the SUV.

Despite the severity of the collision, Dahlin alleges that the driver’s steering wheel airbag did not deploy. Instead, her head allegedly snapped forward into the steering wheel, causing significant trauma.

The complaint alleges that Dahlin suffered a fractured orbital bone, a chipped tooth and a head injury that left her with permanent blurred vision in her right eye. She contends that these injuries were preventable and would have been significantly reduced or avoided altogether if the steering wheel airbag had deployed properly during the crash.

“The defective steering wheel airbag manufactured by Toyota was defective at the time it was leased/sold to Ms. Dahlin, and Ms. Dahlin did nothing to cause or contribute to the defect.”

— Whitney Jo Dahlin v. Toyota Motor North America Inc. et al

The lawsuit raises allegations of defective manufacturing — strict liability and breach of warranties against Toyota Motor North America Inc., as well as similar claims against the dealership as an intermediary in the sale. Dahlin is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 against each defendant, along with other relief deemed appropriate by the court.

In support of the claims’ removal to federal court, Toyota Motor North America submitted an affidavit from Carol Kikuma, its senior manager of accounting and finance, asserting that Toyota Motor Corporation, based in Japan, was responsible for the design and testing of the 2019 model year RAV4.

The affidavit further states that the vehicle was manufactured and assembled, at least in part, by Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada in accordance with the parent company’s specifications.

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