Front Seat Belt Retractor problems of the 2000 Subaru Outback

During a front-end, low-speed collision, I hit my head on the steering wheel. My seatbelt did not properly restrain me in my seat, and the airbags did not deploy. Prior to the accident, I brought a problem to my dealers service center, in which the driver's seat belt would not properly retract. The problem was not corrected, and I believe contributed to the seatbelt failure during my accident.

Rear seat seldom used . In Aug. 2000 my passenger tried to use the seat belt but was unable to extend it around her body. I discovered that the belt was stuck on the roof guide and was frayed for about one inch. I removed it from the guide but it still would not extend around her body. No matter what I did the belt would not extend enough to go around a woman of 125 pounds. Two issues 1: how did the belt fray ? 2: why wouldn't it extend ?.

When disengaging the seat belt, or when moving forward then back, the seat belt retractor is supposed to take up the slack. As the belt retracts it has a tendency to curl up and get jammed in the guide loop above my shoulder. So my driving is distracted because I am trying to unjam the belt. I have reported this problem to Subaru and the dealer and their response is that there is no fix for the problem. Several of them say they have the same problem. This problem occurs 80% of the time. I have also seen belts jammed in other Subarus.