ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The family of an Orange County woman who was killed by a faulty airbag is suing Honda, alleging that the automaker knew about the airbag problem but didn't fix it.
Hien Tran, 51, died in September when the airbag in her 2001 Honda Accord exploded during a crash near Chicksaw Trail and Valencia College Lane.
The attorney for Tran's family said she had no idea her vehicle's airbag had a recall. Family members believe her death wouldn't have happened if Honda had alerted drivers about the faulty airbags.
"She leaves behind eight brothers and sisters," said attorney Hank Didier.
Tran's death investigation following the minor crash was passed from the Florida Highway Patrol to Orange County homicide investigators, then back to FHP troopers.
"They're out there wondering, 'Who would try to kill my sister? Who would do this terrible terrible thing?'" said Didier.
But all along it was the Honda's airbag, made by Takata. Didier said Takata knew the airbags had problems 10 years ago.
"To not get these cars off the road when you have that many years to do it, that's a major problem," said Didier.
The family has just filed a lawsuit alleging Honda and Takata didn't do enough to fix the airbag problem or notify customers, despite several deaths.
The lawsuit also claims Honda recently told dealers not to proactively alert driver because they didn't have enough replacement parts.
When Tran's airbag deployed, sharp pieces of metal utimatley killed her. Nearly one week after her death, her airbag recall notice came in the mail.
"This was a needless tragedy that did not have to happen," said Didier.
WFTV
