Takata Asked to Set Up Fund for Airbag Victims

A U.S. Senator suggests Takata Corp. set up a compensation fund for victims injured or killed by the company's exploding airbag inflators.

Sen. Richard Blumethal (D-Conn.) says the program would be similar to the one General Motors Co. established last year to handle claims about its defective ignition switches.

The GM fund so far has approved payment offers for 117 deaths and 237 serious injuries. Takata inflators have been linked to eight fatalities and more than 100 injuries.

Blumenthal suggested the Takata fund during a hearing in Washington, D.C., about the handling of recalls by 11 car and truck manufacturers to replace some 34 million inflators.