My service airbag light continues to come on when driving. I was told there was a recall on the airbags a few years ago, but my VIN number was not included in that recall. I purchased this car from Carmax in 2018. I was told there were no recalls on my car at time of purchase and it was not having a problem at that time. I’m not sure the exact date the problem started occurring, but I did call Carmax and gave them my VIN number and they said there were no active recalls, but there was a recall on the airbag years ago that I was unaware of.
Buick Verano airbag light comes on
36 of the 441 owner complaints about the Buick Verano describe airbag warning light, most of them for the 2012 model year.
- owner complaints
- 36
- worst model year
- 2012
- typical repair cost reported
- $1,720
- typical mileage
- 72,500
Is there a fix? There are 7 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Trouble codes mentioned
B0081 1
What owners say
The contact owns a 2013 Buick Verano. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Service Air Bag warning light unexpectedly illuminated. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency hotline for further assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 117,000.
I am submitting this complaint to report a safety-related issue involving my 2016 Buick Verano. At approximately 112,000 miles, the vehicle experienced a major transmission failure that significantly affected drivability. Shortly thereafter, an airbag warning light illuminated, indicating a potential malfunction of the supplemental restraint system. An independent mechanic advised that the vehicle was no longer safe or economically reasonable to repair due to the transmission failure and the airbag system warning. The cost of transmission repair was estimated between $5,000.00 and $7,000.00. The vehicle could not be safely driven, sold, or repaired, leaving me with an inoperable vehicle and an outstanding loan balance. I am submitting this complaint to ensure this issue is documented and reviewed, as transmission failure combined with an airbag warning presents a serious safety concern. Also, it’s been widely documented by other consumers of having the same problem with the transmission failing prematurely on these type of vehicles as well.
My passenger airbag warning lights appears on the dash several times a day stating “Airbag safety issue detected”. This has been going on for several months now.
When I start my car air bag lights on when a passenger is not seat air bags keeps light is on and when I have passenger next to me air bag is off. I took this car to dealership I bought they want me to pay $1720 to fix the system I only driven 42000 miles since I bought I had fully guaranteed paid for 5 years by installation to the company. I am not happy for putting my vehicle I do not wish to take another place for repairs as I had not understand why the are asking a lot of money to put it right for air bag for passenger says need air bag service always when I am driving my vehicle
The passenger airbag indicator goes on and off with person in passenger seat. We first noticed this Summer 2023. It has gotten worse. Now a passenger can shift weight slightly one way or another and cause the indicator status to change which disables the airbag. Dealer also confirmed (4/16/24) DTC code B0081(internal malfunction with passenger presence module). I have recently learned there was a warranty extension for this failure (which had expired) which I was unaware of. I now have a vehicle which I feel is unsafe to travel with a passenger! If GM is aware of the problem and the dealer (imperial Chevrolet) has charged me $160 diagnostic fee for a known problem and tells me it will cost approx. $1,800 to repair/replace the sensor and module.
The contact owns a 2017 Buick Verano. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, she noticed that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.
Advanced diagnostics alerts whether someone is sitting in the passenger seat or not. Sensor alerts constantly while driving. If there is a passenger sometimes the airbag light isn't lit notifying the airbag is on. This happens whether the vehicle is in motion or not and has happened many, many times.
The contact owns a 2015 Buick Verano. The contact stated that the driver’s and passenger’s side air bag warning lights were illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the contact was informed that the cause of the failure might be related to crimped wiring inside the vehicle. The contact was provided an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure however, the contact had not received a response. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
Check airbag warning light comes on, when someone is in passenger seat. Air bag light is off. When the passenger seat is empty the air bag light is on and the fasten seatbelt light flashes and chimes. I feel this is a safety issue and should be addressed.
Related recalls
Air bags: side/window
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Cruze vehicles. The left and/or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflators located on the roof rails above the headliner, may rupture at the inflator weld joint.
- Risk
- An inflator that ruptures may partially inflate the air bag and cause sharp metal fragments to enter or exit the vehicle, increasing the risk of an injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the left and/or right-side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 5, 2025. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 or Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N252530830. This recall is an expansion of previous the federal safety agency recall numbers 23V674 and 23V870.
Recall number 25V764000 · Recall details
Air bags: side/window
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Cruze vehicles. The left and/or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflators may rupture at the inflator weld joint. This recall is an expansion of Recall 23V‑674.
- Risk
- An inflator that ruptures may partially inflate the air bag and cause sharp metal fragments to enter or exit the vehicle, increasing the risk of an injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the left and/or right-side RRAB modules as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 22, 2024. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 and Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N232425640.
Recall number 23V870000 · Recall details
Air bags: side/window
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Cruze vehicles. The left and/or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflators located on the roof rails above the headliner, may rupture at the inflator weld joint.
- Risk
- An inflator that ruptures may partially inflate the air bag and cause sharp metal fragments to enter or exit the vehicle, increasing the risk of an injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the left and/or right-side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 12, 2024. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 or Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N232408490.
Recall number 23V674000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: driver side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Camero, Sonic, and Volt vehicles. The driver-side air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect.
- Risk
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the driver-side air bag module, free of charge. On some 2013 Volt vehicles, the steering wheel will be replaced as well, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 23, 2023. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 and Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N232413120.
Recall number 23V516000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles manufactured December 2, 2011 to July, 16, 2012, Chevrolet Cruze vehicles manufactured December 7, 2011 to July 25, 2012, Chevrolet Sonic vehicles manufactured December 5, 2011 to August 2, 2012, and Chevrolet Camaro vehicles manufactured December 1, 2011 to June 11, 2012. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
- Risk
- If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The recall began on July 25, 2014. Chevrolet owners may contact GM at 1‑800‑222‑1020. Buick owners may contact GM at 1‑800‑521‑7300. Note: This is an expansion of recalls 12V‑522 and 13V‑023.
Recall number 14V300000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic, and model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
- Risk
- If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on February 13, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1‑800‑521‑7300.
Recall number 13V023000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Cruze, and Chevrolet Sonic vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
- Risk
- If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal airbag, that airbag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on January 11, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1‑800‑521‑7300.
Recall number 12V522000 · Recall details
Questions about the Buick Verano airbag light
Why does the airbag light come on in the Buick Verano?
Owners who report it most often also describe complete transmission failure, wrong fuel gauge reading and broken coil spring, and the codes they mention most are B0081.
Which Buick Verano years have airbag warning light problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2012 (12 complaints), 2016 (8 complaints) and 2013 (6 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix airbag warning light on the Buick Verano?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $1,720 (median of 5 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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