After an airbag deployment, some consumers report seeing one or two holes in their airbag. They then question whether their airbag deployed properly. The short answer is: it depends. This post will describe the various types of holes in airbag fabric, and some of their causes.

Some airbags are designed to have holes in them. These are called vent holes, because their purpose is to release or “vent” the gas that is inside the airbag. As the gas exits the vent holes, the airbag compresses, gradually slowing down your body during a crash. These vent holes are usually round, and can have a diameter of between about ¾ inch and 3 inches. The smaller vent holes are often used in driver airbags, with the larger vent holes used almost exclusively in passenger air bags. When you look at them, the circular shape should be fairly obvious. However, if the fabric around the edge of the vent is not reinforced, the pressure within the airbag during the crash can make the round hole more square in shape by slight tearing of the fabric. This can be normal, if they were designed to tear. In almost all cases, vent holes in a driver air bag should face to the front, away from you. Vent holes in a passenger air bag are generally on the sides of the airbag, and not in the portion of the fabric that you normally touch.

A few vehicles used “petal vents” which are semi-circular slits in a driver airbag. The intent is that these vents open up like a flap when the airbag is pressurized. Some believe that these vents are not nearly as efficient as traditional vent holes, and can be a sign of an inflator that over-pressurizes the airbag.

Holes in your airbag that are lengthy or irregular can be signs that your airbag tore during deployment. We have seen some instances where the fabric “catches” on a piece of the surrounding frame or cover. If this happens, your airbag did not perform as it should have, and you may not have been fully protected during your accident. In a few cases, large scale ripping of the airbag fabric (or its tethers) is caused by airbag inflators that are overly aggressive: their forcefulness simply rips the fabric apart during the deployment process. These are clearly defective.

In some other instances, you can have either a circular hole or an irregular hole in the fabric closest to the driver or passenger. These can be caused by defects in the airbag inflator that cause it to break apart. Loose pieces from such a defect can then be sent flying like shrapnel right through the bag. These same pieces can cause devastating injuries to a driver or passenger in their path.

A car company or supplier who produces defective airbags or airbag inflators should accept responsibility for their defect; if not, you should speak with an air bag lawyer knowledgeable about such issues.