The invention relates to an occupant protection system for a motor vehicle comprising a vehicle seat (2) with airbags (3) integrated in lateral areas of a seating part and of a seat back. The air pressure of the airbags can be set by means of a compressed air regulating device (4). According to the invention, a coordination unit is provided that evaluates data relevant to safety for a driving operation, and the compressed air regulating device is temporally controlled so that at least one airbag of the vehicle seat is filled before the occurrence of an anticipated accident.
