The mother of a man killed by a defective Takata airbag in 2023 has condemned Cyprus’s handling of the ongoing airbag crisis, claiming “the state has failed us” as officials order only 138 vehicles off roads despite identifying 82,000 affected cars.
Maria Loui, whose son Kyriakos Oxinos died in an airbag-related incident, criticised Transport Minister’s response to the crisis. “We initially heard about 12,000 affected vehicles, now we’re dealing with 82,000 lethal airbags“, Loui told philenews.
“These airbags can explode due to heat and humidity without any collision. Every minute counts”, she said, warning that more casualties could occur if stronger action isn’t taken.
Loui revealed that defective Takata airbags were discovered in her second son’s vehicle in April 2023. “We immediately took it to the dealership for replacement”, she said.
She called for parliamentary intervention to implement stricter legislation, expressing frustration with both government response and car companies’ handling of customer inquiries.
Three deaths have been linked to the defective airbags in Cyprus so far.
