'Change faulty airbags or face stern action'

PUTRAJAYA: Stern action will be taken against car owners who fail to comply with the Takata airbag recall, including legal action or blacklisting them.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said he had instructed the Road Transport Department to send out reminders to car owners with faulty Takata airbags on the need to change them.
"Once car owners receive the notice, they will have 14 days to change the airbags at the nearest service centre, failing which a second notice will be sent out.
"If owners still refuse to comply, we will issue them a summons with a fine ranging from RM300 to RM2,000," Loke said at a press conference after a meeting with car manufacturers at his ministry today.
The ministry will also be seeking assistance from insurance companies to trace car owners who could not be reached due to a change of address.
"It takes about an hour or two at the respective service centres, and it's free, so I don't see why they can't change the airbags," he said.
He said among the affected car models are Honda, Toyota, Nissan, BMW, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Mazda and Lexus.
Car owners can visit the respective car manufacturer website to check if their cars are included in the list.
Loke said only 441,730 out of 799,963 vehicles have had their faulty airbags replaced.