The French overseas department of Guadeloupe still has 16,000 vehicles equipped with defective Takata airbags on its roads, despite the island having already seen several fatal accidents linked to the faulty equipment.
"At the beginning of the crisis, 42,000 vehicles were equipped with Takata airbags. We were able to identify a large number of them," Guadeloupe's prefect Thierry Devimeux said on Wednesday.
He warned that "owners are not taking the necessary steps" over the 16,000 identified vehicles whose airbags have still not been changed.
"The state services are unable to determine which vehicles are still on the road or not, which have been purchased or not," he said, adding that police and gendarmes would begin random spot checking of vehicles on the roads.
Last week, the French Ministry of Transport announced that, starting 1 January 2026, all vehicles presented for technical inspection will be checked to determine if they are equipped with a Takata airbag and classified as "stop drive" if so – meaning an immediate ban on driving until they have been replaced.
Defective Takata airbags prompt mass recall of popular car models in France
Deadly explosions
The now bankrupt Japanese company Takata has been at the heart of a global scandal for more than a decade.
Its airbags have caused deadly explosions and resulted in serious injuries due to an explosive propellant – ammonium nitrate – which degrades over time, particularly in hot and humid climates.
The airbags deploy even in the event of a minor collision, causing an explosion similar to that of a grenade and projecting pieces of metal and plastic into the car.
To date, 46 accidents have been attributed to defective Takata airbag explosions across France – including 42 in overseas territories and departments – which have caused 20 deaths (18 of which were in overseas territories) and 25 injuries (24 in overseas territories).
Guadeloupe is the French overseas territory that has been most affected by accidents caused by Takata airbags, with 10 deaths recorded.
At the end of November, a driver also died due to a faulty airbag in Réunion Island, where as of 30 November there were 20,416 potentially dangerous vehicles still on the road, according to the prefecture.
Lawsuits
The French consumer association CLCV announced earlier this month that it had launched a class action lawsuit against the car manufacturer Stellantis on behalf of 150 owners of cars equipped with defective Takata airbags.
The CLCV said it wanted to "assert the damage" suffered by vehicle owners affected by the recall campaign, which it called "late, partial and disorganised".
The organisation said owners were affected by "material" damages as well as moral damages such as "anxiety-related harm".
Citroën tells C3 and DS3 owners to stop driving after latest airbag death
Stellantis declined to comment on the ongoing proceedings but told French news agency AFP that the group "is mobilising its entire network and implementing the most significant measures to guarantee the safety of its customers".
The manufacturer also specified that 70 percent of the vehicles in its French fleet of Citroën, DS, and Opel brands "have been serviced," including 90 percent of C3 and DS3 vehicles.
According to figures released by the Ministry of Transport on 3 December, 670,000 vehicles have been repaired since July, the date of the decree that strengthened the recall measures. In total, "almost 1.2 million vehicles have been repaired," it added.
UFC-Que Choisir, another major consumer association, also launched a class action lawsuit against Stellantis in France for in July.
In the United States – the country hardest hit, with 28 deaths – Ford, Toyota, Honda, BMW, Nissan and Mazda have paid a total of $1.5 billion in compensation to victims.
(with newswires)
