Thousands of cars in Cyprus may have defective airbags, it was heard in parliament on Tuesday.

The matter was raised during a discussion about recalls at the House commerce committee, with committee chairman and Disy MP Nikos Sykas saying thousands of cars on Cyprus’ roads have not been recalled despite potentially having problems with their airbags, as well as others which do not meet European Union standards for other reasons.

“This discussion will continue because this matter is very serious, and Disy considers that people’s safety is a priority,” he said, adding that his party has called on the relevant issues “to at long last put in place a process of detection and control” regarding vehicle safety.

Akel MP Costas Costa said there was “probably another death from a faulty airbag a few days ago”, though he did not specify which road fatality he was talking about, and said that “we heard the same thing again from the authorities”, likely expressing dissatisfaction with a perceived lack of action on the matter.

He added, “we did not receive clear answers from the road transport department because it does not inform owners about airbags”, and said he now expects answers from the companies which manufacture airbags.

He said the road transport department had informed him that there are around 12,000 cars on Cyprus’ roads which are equipped with faulty airbags made by Takata, a company which faced a worldwide recall campaign.

However, he said, this figure only covers vehicles imported from the United Kingdom and the European Union, and “no one knows” how many cars imported from other countries are equipped with faulty Takata airbags.

Additionally, he said, despite the fact that dealerships had given assurances that they would not charge for checks on airbags in cars they were selling, some people had complained they were being charged as much as €160 and then told their airbags were faulty.

He did note, however, that there is no law which obliges dealerships not to charge for the service.

Diko MP Chrysis Pantelides pointed out that while the relevant EU directive is clear and has been transposed into Cypriot domestic law, “there is a problem in the implementation and the degree of recalls regarding these products” in practice.

Green MP Stavros Papadouris said he had asked for a website to be created, which would allow consumers to see for themselves whether their car has been subjected to a recall order.

He also said there may be a number of cars on Cyprus’ roads which have been subject to recall orders regarding their brakes or other parts, and that there will be “consequences” for these potential defects.

The issue of faulty Takata airbags has been ongoing for almost two years, with it believed that the death of 24-year-old Kyriakos Oxynos in January 2023 was caused in part by a faulty airbag.

The fault is related to exposure to high levels of heat or humidity, with Takata airbags having a tendency to explode when released under such circumstances. This then shoots the airbag’s metal inflator outwards and in the direction of the person it was designed to protect, potentially causing further injuries or, in some cases, death.