How to Protect Your Eyes When the Airbags go Off in Your Car
- 1). Move your car seat as far back as you safely can to properly operate your vehicle. This should be done on both the driver and passenger sides of the vehicle. Drivers should keep a minimum of 10 inches away from the horn cover, while passengers should be positioned as far from the dashboard as possible.
- 2). Tilt the front passenger seat slightly to give more room between the passenger and the airbag. Never move the seat too far at an incline, which can cause the passenger to slide underneath the belt restraints during an accident.
- 3). Wear your seatbelt at all times, even at slow speeds or when driving in parking lots. According to a study performed by Brown and Penn State Universities, drivers and passengers received fewer and less severe airbag eye injuries with better visual outcomes when wearing seatbelts.
- 4). Move infants, children under 12-years old and the elderly to the backseat of the vehicle instead of having them ride up in the front. Most airbags are designed for men who are 5 feet, 8 inches in height and 180 pounds.
- 5). Avoid the use of sun visors, which have been shown both in testing and real-case scenarios to snap off during deployment and severely injure eyes.