PLEASE TYPE THIS LETTER ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT’S LETTERHEAD. THEN MAIL TO THE ADDRESS BELOW, AND, FAX TO (202-493-2833) ALSO PLEASE FAX A COPY TO AOI Electrical @ 817-337-5073
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Date / / /
400 Seventh St, S.W. Room #5110
Washington, DC 20590-1000
Attn: Mr. Henry Barreto– Air Bag On/Off Switches
To NHTSA:
We the (your dept here) are going to have air bag on/off switches from AOI Electrical installed on our fleet vehicles. We are aware a pre-existing variance has been granted for Law Enforcement and Government vehicles. However, we are requesting your written approval for this procedure.
Our request is due to our need to protect our officers, computer, and or, electronic equipment from a passenger or (driver side) air bag deployment. Please fax and send us an approval letter as soon as possible. You may contact (contact person here) if you have any questions.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Respectfully,
(Contact Person)
Title
NOTE: QUESTIONS?
CALL AOI Electrical
TOLL FREE @ 1.888.903.0004
Thank you,
Law Enforcement Fleet Department
This is an Example of the letter NHTSA will issue:
This responds to your letter of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), asking whether you may have an on-off switch installed or completely deactivate the passenger-side air bag in your law enforcement or emergency response vehicle(s), due to the need to install special equipment in front of the air bag. This letter grants your request.
NHTSA believes in many instances such special equipment can be safely mounted outside of the air bag deployment zone. When equipment can be so installed, NHTSA would prefer that the passenger-side air bag remain fully operational. You may wish to contact the manufacturer for assistance in configuring the layout of your equipment.
NHTSA also recognizes that you may be unable to have your equipment installed in a manner that is both effective and outside of the air bag deployment area due to cost constraints or the particular needs of your department. Accordingly, NHTSA will not object to the installation of on-off switches, or to air bag deactivation should no switch be available. Since NHTSA is keeping a database of vehicles with deactivated air bags or retrofit on-off or switches, please provide me with a list of the VINs for each vehicle with a deactivated air bag or on-off switch.
If the air bag is deactivated or switched off , the seat belts will be the only available restraint in a crash. Thus, it will be more important than ever for anyone occupying the passenger seat to use both the lap and shoulder belt at all times. We are enclosing a warning label stating that your air bag has been deactivated. For the safety of front seat passengers in your vehicle, we ask that you affix this label on the sun visor above the deactivated air bag. In addition, because of the safety benefits provided by the air bags to the vast majority of drivers, we strongly urge you to have any deactivated air bag reactivated before selling the vehicle. Alternatively, please be sure to inform the new owner that the air bag has been deactivated.
If you have any further questions, please send them to this office at this address or FAX them to us at (202) 493-2833.
Sincerely,
Kim S. Jackson
Team Leader
Enclosures:
Warning Label
On/Off Switch Request Form
On/Off Switch Information Brochure
