**So it only increases safety 9% *but* how much does it reduce injury if someone is in an accident? That's more relevant.
"6. Do frontal airbags injure people? If so, how and who's at greatest risk? The energy required to inflate frontal airbags quickly and protect people in a crash can sometimes cause injury, as well. Fortunately, most of these injuries are minor scrapes and abrasions on people's hands, arms, and faces. Serious injuries and deaths are relatively rare; deaths attributable to airbag inflation in low speed crashes numbered about 220 according to NHTSA (as of April 2003), compared with the nearly 10,000 lives that have been saved by airbags. In addition, it's important to note that these problems aren't happening entirely at random, and occupants can easily reduce their risk. Most deaths caused by frontal airbags involve people who were unbelted or improperly belted. Unbelted people, especially passengers, are likely to move forward if there's hard braking or other violent maneuvers before a frontal crash. These people can end up on top of, or extremely close to, their airbags as they begin to inflate. Anyone on top of or very close to a frontal airbag as it begins to inflate faces the possibility of injury. The first step in preventing the injuries from inflating airbags is to wear one's seat belt and maintain a proper seating position. Other important precautions include:
Drivers: Drivers who sit very close to the steering wheel or lean forward in their seats face the likelihood of being struck by an airbag during a frontal collision. Short drivers and elderly ones can be especially vulnerable to inflation injuries from frontal airbags because they tend to sit close to the steering wheel. It is recommended that drivers sit with their chests at least 10 inches away from the center of their steering wheels.
Infants and children: More than 90 percent of the passenger airbag fatalities have been children and infants. They account for about sixty percent of all airbag related deaths. Rear-facing restraints should not be used in the front seat of a vehicle with a passenger side airbag because this seat puts an infant's head too close to the airbag. The forces of the inflating airbag against the back of a rear-facing restraint can cause serious, even fatal head injuries."
More stats below: