2019 Honda Odyssey: seat belt won't latch or retract

Filed Oct 8, 2026 · Airbags, Seat belts · NY · 3 injuries

I was driving on a parkway with my children aged [XXX] & [XXX]. No warning lamps or messages were present at any point before this incident: While driving straight ahead on the parkway my vehicle drove over a pothole causing the side airbags to deploy without warning. I immediately felt a burning sensation on my left arm & abdominal pain. My seatbelt had locked tightly, impairing mobility & making it difficult to view and judge the speed of other vehicles around me, thus making exiting the parkway difficult & dangerous. Upon stopping the vehicle I observed the left side curtain airbag & the driver's seat side airbag had deployed. My daughter and I, who are both asthmatic, had difficulty breathing as a result of the expelled airbag gas. My son, seated next to the airbag, suffered pain in his ears and tinnitus from the noise of the airbags. Upon inspecting the exterior of vehicle I observed no damage consequential to driving over the pothole. Inside the vehicle, a quick inspection revealed a damaged headliner from the side curtain airbag, a damaged driver seat from its airbag, & a driver's side seatbelt that would not retract or extend. I did not inspect other seatbelts. Front airbags did Not deploy. NYPD responded but did not take a report. The vehicle is now at a Honda Service department, Honda case#XXX. Presently, the case has been reviewed by a Honda case manager who refused repair for the damage resulting from this incident, in spite of an active recall addressing this issue. [MFR RECALL NO: UNW, the federal safety agency RECALL NO.:26V227- side & side curtain airbags INADVERTENTLY DEPLOY WHEN THE VEHICLE ENCOUNTERS STRONG ROAD IMPACTS SUCH AS POTHOLES]. I received no recall notice prior to this incident. I discovered the recall through my own research after this incident. I have no information on what if anything Honda has done to test or inspect any supplemental restraint system or airbag system components. Please see attached photos. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Oct 3, 2025 · Seat belts · MO · 1 injury

My daughter was injured when the third row, far right side seat belt malfunctioned, and she became entrapped. My daughter had fallen asleep in the seat and lay a little sideways resting on a sibling buckled in the center seat. When she arrived home the belt was very tight, and would not undo. She tried to get out and the seat belt auto retractor mechanism was working making it harder to move and then impossible. We reclined the seat a little to try and pull her out and this didn’t help. We also tried removing pieces of clothing and pulling her out to no avail. By this time our child was in pain as the belt was cutting into her waist. Neighbors came out of their homes due to the screaming, this was evening time so felt no option but to cut the belt and release her. This event was very frightening and distressing for our family. We do not understand how the auto retractor and buckle mechanisms malfunctioned but worry it may happen again. We have read similar accounts on the Honda forums. The staff were not helpful or concerned about this malfunction despite a mechanic at Honda acknowledging this has happened before. I would like to formally lodge my concerns over this incident.

Filed Aug 8, 2023 · Seat belts · 59,000 miles · AZ · 1 injury

The contact owns a 2019 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that while her grandchild was seated in the third-row driver-side seat, the seat belt became twisted around the waist and he became stuck in the seat belt. The contact unbuckled the seat belt but the seat belt failed to retract and loosen the child from the restraint. The child began to scream in pain as attempts to loosen the belt made it tighter. The contact called the authorities who sent the fire department to assist; the fire department was forced to cut the seatbelt to release the child. The child sustained red markings around his waist but did not need any medical assistance. The dealer and the manufacturer were both notified of the failure but neither provided any assistance. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 59,000.

Filed Feb 1, 2023 · Seat belts · MI

False seatbelt latching during cold weather. I ALWAYS wear my seatbelt. When the weather is cold, I will buckle up,hear an audible click, and tug on the seatbelt, but every so often it will become unlatched as I am driving (2-3 times per week.) Seems ok once vehicle warms up and in warmer weather.

Filed Jan 10, 2023 · Seat belts · 40,000 miles · IL

The contact owns a 2019 Honda Odyssey. The contact stated that the driver's side third-row seat belt had detached; however, the buckle was still intact. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.

Filed Oct 29, 2019 · Acceleration, Brakes · 14,000 miles · CA · crash · 2 injuries

Driving on an expressway, the cars in front of me are slowing down, my car's collision mitigation braking system sends a visual alert with the "brake" signal coming on and I feel the brakes engaging, simultaneously I slam on the brakes, and while there was still distance between the car in front of mine and mine, I am not able to brake. The brakes seem confused, and the impact is so strong that my head almost reaches the steering wheel. The seatbelt is locked in place and leaves me sore. Once I am able to get ahold that I was just in a car accident, I am unable to lower the windows, the car is able to call for help on it's own and does so although nothing comes of that in that no help comes. Once I get off the van I notice the plate is knocked and on the floor, the bumper has fallen off and the hood and grill are curled up pictures attached. The car seems to be leaking a fluid and we are unable to start it. I believe that because we (the car and I) simultaneously having the system engaging on it's own and my slamming on the brakes prevented the brakes from working. The impact was with such velocity that it's impossible to have had them working properly. This is an important safety concern if the driver and the system are unable to work together or too confusing for the system. Interestingly, the air bags didn't deploy! Additionally, the initial scan by the auto body shop had many alerts come up but the ones I would like to highlight are ABS - ECM failure and integrated driver support system - brake actuator malfunction, attaching that scan too.