HOUSTON – A Houston family is seeking justice after a loved one was allegedly killed by a faulty air bag.
Carlos Solis, 35, died Jan. 18 after getting into a low-speed crash with another vehicle near Spring High School.
It wasn't the severity of the crash itself that killed Solis, rather it was a faulty airbag in his 2002 Honda Accord.
"It was a minor accident and unfortunately anyone else could have walked away from it," said Jim Perdue, a lawyer who is now representing Solis' family members.
The airbag was made by a Japanese company called Takata. The bags can explode with too much force, blowing apart a metal canister. In Solis' case, shrapnel from the canister lodged in his neck, causing him to bleed to death.
On Friday, Honda confirmed Solis died because the airbag ruptured. Since 2011, there has been a recall out for his 2002 Honda Accord, but repairs were never made. Solis bought the vehicle last April and had no idea about the airbag issue.
"This has been an inadequate recall from the beginning and now because of the delay you still have these airbags in almost 20 million cars that have not been effectively changed out," Perdue said.
Now Solis' family wants to make sure there are no more deaths.
"The family wants to see people aware that these airbags are still out there, that the recall is inadequate and they want to see these airbags off the street," Perdue said.
Honda has issued condolences to the family. Meanwhile there are about 20 million vehicles worldwide that have been recalled because of a faulty Takata airbag. Other affected car makers besides Honda include Nissan, Subaru, Ford, Chrysler, BMW, Mitsubishi and Mazda.
Next week Perdue plans to file suit against Honda, Takata and the car dealership that sold Solis the vehicle.
Solis leaves behind a wife, two children, two brothers, and several other family members and friends.