The Citroën recall began in late 2023 with a warning to check faulty Takata airbags. A second, urgent notice soon followed, urging drivers to stop using affected cars because in the event of an accident, the airbag, produced by the Takata company, could explode and cause serious consequences.
In October 2024, Altroconsumo, a member of Euroconsumers, launched a class action against Stellantis N.V. and Groupe PSA Italia S.p.A., seeking compensation for drivers affected by the defective Takata airbags installed in Citroën C3 and DS3 vehicles.
A deadly defect, a delayed response
In 2023, an urgent recall was issued for the Citroën C3 and DS3, warning that their front airbags, made by the now-bankrupt Japanese company Takata, could be defective. A follow-up notice went further, instructing drivers to stop using their cars immediately: the airbags could explode when deployed, causing fatal or life-changing injuries.
What this means in practice for drivers?
Faced with a grave safety risk, motorists rushed to arrange replacements, but the process was anything but smooth. Drivers struggled to get appointments at authorised service centres, faced long waiting times and shortages of replacement parts, and ran into technical problems on Citroën’s website for booking the free replacement.
Many were left without their cars for weeks or even months, with no replacement vehicle, no clear timeline for repairs, and often having to rent a car at their own expense. More than 170,000 motorists in Italy alone were unable to use their cars because of the manufacturer’s inefficient handling of the recall.
Altroconsumo takes action
Altroconsumo first sent a formal notice to PSA Group, Citroën’s parent company, demanding swift action. Despite promises, the situation remained unresolved. In October 2024, it launched a class action against Stellantis NV and PSA Italia SpA to secure compensation for affected drivers.
Altroconsumo proposes compensation of €1,500 for non-financial damages, covering the distress, inconvenience and stress caused by the safety risk, plus €17.24 for each day of delay, equal to the average cost of renting a small car. A driver who waited three months could therefore claim over €3,000. Under the Italian system, a judge will set the final amounts.
The Court of Appeal of Turin has now rejected the companies’ appeal, clearing the way for around 170,000 affected owners to join the action.
Equal redress across the Single Market
This is great news for Italian drivers, but Citroën C3 and DS3 owners in other countries have yet to receive the same redress. Consumers in Belgium, Spain and Portugal faced the same safety risks, the same inconvenience and the same financial losses.
Euroconsumers has formally called on Stellantis NV to provide fair and adequate compensation to all affected consumers in its member countries. In a single market, consumers should not receive different treatment depending on where they bought their car.
Letters, complaints and collective actions, with the documents that back them.
