eBay bans airbag sales as concerns about faulty or counterfeit parts rise
The online retailer eBay is joining a pack of its competitors in banning sales of airbags and many kinds of airbag parts in the U.S.
Although eBay hasn't said what motivated this action, the company's move comes after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released investigation results in April which found that certain substandard airbag inflators imported from China were responsible for a dozen deaths or serious injuries since 2023.
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inflators → ban → 2023
In July, The Wall Street Journal traced the origins of several such faulty — and potentially counterfeit — airbag components, and found that one had been purchased as an aftermarket part on eBay.
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one → trace → eBay
eBay declined an interview with NPR, but pointed to an online statement saying the decision was made "following a comprehensive review of the risks these products may pose to eBay users."
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products → decline → users
In an emailed statement to NPR, eBay said that the company would enforce the new policy by using seller compliance audits, filtering algorithms and AI-supported monitoring.
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company → email → audits
Consumer safety advocates welcomed eBay's move.
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advocates → welcome → move
"It's a good thing that eBay is no longer going to be offering airbags or airbag components on their platform.
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eBay → go → platform
And it's about time," said Rosemary Shahan, president of the nonprofit Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety.
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Shahan → say → Reliability
But William Wallace, director of safety advocacy for Consumer Reports, cautioned that faulty or counterfeit airbags could still crop up on other sites.
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airbags → caution → sites
"It is a game of Whack-A-Mole," he said.
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he → say → Mole
After all, eBay is not the first company to ban the sale of airbags or components.
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eBay → ban → airbags
Amazon, the nation's biggest online retailer, prohibits airbag sales.
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Amazon → prohibit → sales
So does Meta, the owner of Facebook Marketplace, and so do the Chinese retail sites Temu and Alibaba.
Amazon, Meta and Temu all told NPR that they continuously monitor their platforms for prohibited item listings.
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they → do → listings
They did not respond to questions about what motivated their bans.
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what → respond → bans
Alibaba pointed to a press release stating that the company banned airbags over safety concerns in 2014, and that it later extended its ban "to component parts for the same reason, as well as to halt potential fakes."
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it → point → fakes
The release said algorithms on Alibaba's platforms will intercept pre-listings and block them.
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algorithms → say → them
Wallace points out that these bans alone don't seem to be preventing bad airbags from reaching the market.
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bans → point → market
"It's one thing to have a policy in place banning the sale of airbags," he said.
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he → have → airbags
"It's an entirely different thing to actually see the sale of airbags stop.
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sale → see → airbags
"
How airbags work
Airbags are not made of pillowy fluff.
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Airbags → work → fluff
"Airbags are actually like a pyrotechnic device," said Becky Mueller, a senior research engineer at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an independent nonprofit that conducts vehicle crash tests and awards safety ratings.
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that → say → ratings
During a crash, Mueller said, a sensor measuring the car's speed determines whether it's just been in a high-speed collision and sends a signal to the airbag module.
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it → say → module
This ignites the airbag inflator.
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This → ignite → inflator
Gases inside the inflator expand in a fraction of a second.
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Gases → expand → second
This creates the airbag's pillowy appearance, which is meant to protect a driver's head and chest.
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which → create → head
But when airbags don't work properly, Mueller said, the inflator can become dangerous.
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inflator → work → ?
Its parts can become brittle and break apart.
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parts → become → ?
Then, as the airbag inflates, those parts are "flying at your face."
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parts → inflate → face
That shrapnel puts people in danger, and has caused fatalities — including those alleged in the April NHTSA report.
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shrapnel → put → report
NHTSA's largest airbag recall, which affected an estimated 67 million airbags in the U.S., began in 2014, after the agency received reports that shrapnel from airbags made by the Japanese company Takata — used in vehicles made by Honda, Toyota, and Nissan, among others — had led to fatalities.
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shrapnel → affect → fatalities
Scientists ultimately found the company's airbag igniters were letting in moisture and degrading over time, which was particularly dangerous to drivers in hotter, more humid climates.
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which → find → climates
Takata later filed for bankruptcy and was sentenced to pay over $1 billion in criminal penalties; NHTSA still has a "Do Not Drive" advisory for vehicles with a particular kind of Takata airbag, which is more likely to explode during a crash.
And while there's always a risk that an automotive part could malfunction, that risk is compounded if it's counterfeit.
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it → file → crash
It might look like a brand-name part, but it may not work like one, and it might not have been tested properly — or it may not deploy at all, said Mueller.
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Mueller → look → one
Plus, it's hard to recall fake parts, because they're masquerading as something else, and it's hard to pin down who imported and distributed them.
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who → recall → them
Online counterfeiting doesn't seem like a big deal for some kinds of products, Mueller said.
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Mueller → seem → products
Worst case scenario, she said, if she accidentally buys some fake Nikes, "I'm out a bunch of money and maybe the shoes fall apart in six months.
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shoes → say → months
"
"The stakes are much higher when we're talking about lives," she continued.
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she → talk → lives
Because of counterfeit airbags, she said, "People have died.
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People → say → airbags
People have been injured.
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People → injure → ?
People have been maimed."
Could your airbag be faulty or counterfeit?
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airbag → maim → ?
New cars come with airbags which are certified by the manufacturer.
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which → come → manufacturer
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
