Recalls

According to the Driver and Vehicle Standard Agency (DVSA)’s Code of Practice, a ‘safety defect’ is defined as ‘a failure due to design and/or construction, which is likely to affect the safe operation of the product – and pose a significant risk to the driver, occupants and others’. For example, this could be a fault which prevents an airbag from deploying.  

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is the government-appointed authority responsible for product safety in the UK’s automotive sector, and oversees the UK’s safety recall scheme for vehicles in the UK. 

The DVSA’s Code of Practice outlines the process for managing vehicle safety defects and recalls in this country.
Vehicles will not show as having been recalled until the manufacturer has informed the DVSA about the need to take such action.

Vehicles will not show as having been recalled until the manufacturer has informed the DVSA about the need to take such action.

A vehicle safety recall can be defined as where a car manufacturer announces that a specific model, or models, requires one or more components to be replaced, due to one or more safety defects being found, which could put driver, occupant, and other road user safety at risk.

Vehicle recalls are fairly common, and are often widely publicised by the media when a large volume of vehicles are affected (i.e. the number runs into the thousands or millions, for example). The frequency has also risen over the decades due to the growing complexity of modern vehicles.

For example, according to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), 1.1 million cars (and almost 1.2 million vehicles in total) were recalled in the first eight months of 2024.

This equated to 3% of the UK car parc (i.e. the total number of cars on UK roads), which stood at 36,165,401 in 2024, according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

You may see a recall announced in the press or on social media, and this could be the first time that you hear about it.

However, the vehicle manufacturer will formally notify you in a written letter and/or via their app as appropriate, highlighting the safety related concerns with the vehicle, what repairs are needed, and the next steps to have repairs completed.

You can also check whether your car is affected by a recall here.

To find out whether a specific vehicle is subject to a recall, you can enter the car’s 17-digit Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) on The Motor Ombudsman’s dedicated online recalls portal.

Alternatively, the Government’s MOT history service (for cars aged three years and above) will also highlight whether a vehicle has an outstanding recall when a vehicle registration is entered.

The communication from the vehicle manufacturer will often detail the next steps, which will likely provide the contact information to book in an appointment at a local franchise dealership to have the necessary repairs carried out. These should be at no cost to yourself, as repairs relate to the manufacturing of the vehicle itself. 

When vehicles are recalled by manufacturers, you will typically be asked to take your car to one of the vehicle manufacturer’s franchise dealerships to have the necessary repairs carried out.

Franchise dealers accredited to The Motor Ombudsman’s Codes of Practice are listed on The Motor Ombudsman’s Business Finder.

Any work that is undertaken in relation to a recall notice is at no cost to vehicle owners, and you should not be charged for the work. 

The Motor Ombudsman is unable to review consumer complaints that relate to the issuing itself of a recall by a vehicle manufacturer, as this falls within the scope of the Driver Vehicle and Standards Agency (DVSA).

However, examples of types of disputes that The Motor Ombudsman may be able to consider under its Codes of Practice (if these have not been resolved in the first instance with a business), are as follows (please note that this list is not exhaustive):

• The standard of work carried out by a repairer in relation to a recall not being of the correct standard (Service and Repair Code); and
• A vehicle being knowingly sold with an outstanding recall and faults at the point of sale (Vehicle Sales Code).

The Consumer Rights Act 2015 states that goods, such as vehicles, should be of ‘satisfactory quality’, fit for purpose, and match the description provided.

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act, part of which came into force in 2025, requires businesses to provide clear and accurate information about vehicles, including their specification, history, and any potential issues, whilst it also enhances existing consumer rights, such as those in relation to the provision of information, unfair business practices, and misleading actions and omissions.

Please note that for The Motor Ombudsman to review a dispute, it needs to relate to a business that is accredited to one or more of its Codes of Practice.

Although complaints raised about a manufacturer recall itself fall within the remit of The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), The Motor Ombudsman is still able to provide some assistance to vehicle owners.

In the event of a recall, The Motor Ombudsman will remain in close contact with the brand concerned to be able to stay informed of the progress of the recall, and the actions being taken to provide a remedy for affected vehicles.

The Motor Ombudsman will also look to identify existing cases logged by consumers where concerns have been raised in relation to a specific recall, and issue any communications to them in line with the guidance provided by the vehicle manufacturer, as well as any recommended remedial actions.

Please note that The Motor Ombudsman is only able to work with vehicle manufacturers that are accredited to its New Car Code.

Section Six of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA)’s Code of Practice states that the vehicle manufacturer must notify the DVSA as soon as possible once a safety defect has been identified, and include information about the make and model of the vehicles, third party components which may be involved, a description of the defect and estimated number of vehicles affected, and the potential risk to safety caused by the defect.

Vehicle manufacturers must then contact owners of affected vehicles (e.g. in writing by letter) to notify them about the recall, and the next steps to get any defects identified, repaired.

A vehicle manufacturer will endeavour to supply parts as soon as possible for repair work to be undertaken in relation to a recall, and there no formal guidelines governing this.

The Motor Ombudsman’s New Car Code states that spare parts will be made available from the time a new model is launched, throughout its production, and for a reasonable period thereafter.

A reasonable period is ordinarily 10 years from the end of the production date for standard product lines for UK models. However, the Code does not stipulate a timeframe for the supply of parts to repairers to fix customer vehicles.

If your closest franchise dealer does not have any appointments in the short term for the recall work to be carried out, you can contact the vehicle manufacturer to ask about alternative businesses in your area that may have availability. 

If you have received a ‘Stop Drive’ notice, it is advisable to follow the guidelines from the vehicle manufacturer in terms of no longer using your vehicle for safety reasons until the required repairs have been undertaken.

It is also worth finding out whether the vehicle needs to be towed to the repairer if it is no longer deemed safe to drive.

When a car is subject to a recall notice, the supply of a courtesy car by a vehicle manufacturer or dealership is at their discretion (i.e. a gesture of goodwill), and is not a legal requirement. 

If you think your vehicle has been damaged during repairs associated with a recall (i.e. by a franchise dealership), it is advisable to speak to the business directly in the first instance to see if there is a suitable resolution that can be found.

If you have given the business up to eight weeks to respond, or deadlock is reached, you can submit your dispute to The Motor Ombudsman if the business is accredited to the Service and Repair Code.

Accredited vehicle repairers across the UK can be found on The Motor Ombudsman’s Business Finder here.

If you think you have already paid for repairs to fix an issue before a recall notice was published, it is advisable to contact the dealer which did the work (if applicable), or the vehicle manufacturer to see if there is any element of goodwill that can be offered.

If a repair was carried out at your own cost, rather than waiting for the repair to be done at no charge as part of the recall, this may also be at the discretion of the repairer or the manufacturer as to whether any kind of reimbursement or award is made.

The 17-digit VIN number is made up of a series of letters and characters, which have the following meaning:

• The first three letters are the ‘World Manufacturer Identifiers’, which explain where the car was made, the brand, and the type of vehicle (for example, A is for passenger cars).

• The fourth to eighth characters (made up of letters and numbers) describe the vehicle, namely the engine type, restraint system (i.e. the safety mechanisms designed to protect occupants in the event of an accident), the engine code, transmission type, and the model of car.

• The ninth character is called a ‘check digit’ which helps detect invalid or forged VINs.

• The tenth character (a letter), applicable to cars from 1981 onwards, stands for the car’s model year. The letter ‘S’ denotes 2025, for example.

A VIN-to-Year chart can be found here.

• The eleventh letter describes the location of the factory which built the car.

• The twelfth to seventeenth characters of the VIN are the production sequence numbers that are unique to the vehicle.

The VIN can often be found on the car’s registration certificate (the V5C document) or on the vehicle itself, i.e. on the driver’s side door pillar, the windscreen or dashboard, or under the bonnet. 

It is possible to offer your car for part exchange or sell it privately with an outstanding recall, but this must be disclosed to the buyer. 

It may be common to read on online forums about the announcement of vehicle recalls in other countries. However, manufacturer recalls are often specific to a geographic region, and therefore, a car being recalled in one country, may not apply to another as specifications and model ranges can differ. 

A retailer should not sell a car to you with known faults or concerns, including those which are the subject of a recall.

In addition, The Motor Ombudsman’s Vehicle Sales Code makes reference to the fact that any faults on a vehicle, including those highlighted by a recall, need to be fixed before going on sale and delivery to a customer.

Although it is always best to address any concerns promptly, there is no deadline as to when a vehicle needs to be taken to a business for repairs, following the issuing of a recall notice. It also does not depend on the age of the vehicle, as the recall is ultimately highlighting a safety concern that needs to be fixed.