U.S. Considers Ban on Chinese Air Bags Blamed for Deaths of 10 People in Survivable Crashes
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, "these substandard parts are killing American families."
U.S. regulators are considering a ban on a Chinese air bag supplier that’s been linked to the deaths of at least 10 people, according to an announcement from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on Thursday.
The company, Jilin Province Detiannuo Safety Technology (also known as DTN), makes air bag inflators that can send metal shards into people after they inflate on impact, according to the safety regulator.
“Instead of inflating the air bag to protect the driver, these inflators exploded, sending large metal fragments into drivers’ chests, necks, eyes and faces,” the NHTSA said in a statement.
NHTSA first opened its investigation into DTN in October 2025 because auto repair shops in the U.S. were using the Chinese air bag parts, which had been blamed for not just 10 deaths but other serious injuries.
“Our initial investigation into the use of illegal Chinese airbags in auto shops has revealed a disturbing trend: these substandard parts are killing American families,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a press release. “The Trump Administration will continue to fight to keep you and your family safe on our roads.”
The Trump administration has actually loosened countless regulations since the president took power again in Jan. 2025, often in unlawful ways.
The Department of Transportation, which oversees NHTSA, released its initial findings about the DTN air bags online Thursday. The inflators the agency has been focusing on were manufactured in 2021 and 2022. In at least 10 of the 12 incidents involving fatalities and serious injuries that the agency investigated, the air bag parts were installed as aftermarket equipment after the vehicle was already involved in a crash where the air bags were deployed.
NHTSA says the air bag parts in its investigation were installed in Hyundai Sonata and Chevrolet Malibu vehicles but that it’s possible there are other makes and models involved.
A DTN inflator installed in an air bag module. Images: U.S. Department of Transportation
The Wall Street Journal reports that DTN says it doesn’t do business in the U.S. and the NHTSA said in a statement that it believes the parts have been imported illegally. NHTSA is still investigating how the air bag parts were imported and is weighing a permanent ban on sales. The initial findings of the agency are available for public comment until April 17, which is consistent with the law. DTN now has an opportunity to respond, though it’s unclear whether it will if it maintains that it doesn’t do business in the U.S.
The Department of Transportation’s statement encourages people who find the air bag parts to contact their local Homeland Security Investigations office or FBI field office. The agency links out to the ICE field offices in its press release.
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