France's Ministry of Transport has announced that vehicles still equipped with defective Takata airbags will be subject to automatic follow-up inspections when they undergo mandatory technical control starting January 1, 2026. The measure, which applies to vehicles covered by "stop drive" recalls requiring immediate cessation of use, is part of a draft decree currently under examination by the Council of State after public consultation concluded in July.

The proposed regulation aims to ensure effective repair of vehicles affected by the massive Takata airbag recalls by leveraging the country's technical inspection system. Defective Takata airbags have been responsible for numerous fatal accidents worldwide due to explosions occurring during minor collisions, prompting global recall campaigns. In France alone, approximately 1.7 million vehicles across all brands are subject to "stop drive" recalls that prohibit driving until the airbags are replaced free of charge.

When the measure takes effect, any vehicle presenting for technical control with unreplaced Takata airbags will receive an inspection report requiring immobilization pending replacement of the defective equipment. This systematic follow-up inspection requirement represents a significant escalation in enforcement efforts for the ongoing recall campaign, which has faced challenges with compliance rates among vehicle owners.

The initiative follows recommendations from the General Inspectorate for the Environment and Sustainable Development (IGEDD), an independent authority that advocated in late July for making Takata airbag replacement a condition for passing technical inspections. The inspectorate argued that such a requirement would accelerate ongoing "stop drive" recalls and effectively prevent the resale of dangerous vehicles on the secondhand market, thereby helping to "skim the market in a system where traceability is poor."