When you buy a new car, you want it to last for as long as possible. After all, it’s an expensive purchase. Unfortunately, cars can have problems from the moment they leave the factory. Fortunately, those same factories have built-in fail-safes that alert owners and dealers when a particular vehicle might be unsafe to drive. These are known as safety recalls, and they’re your primary line of defence against dangerous cars. When a recall is announced, it doesn’t mean that your vehicle is about to burst into flames or explode. It simply means there’s a good chance that something about your car could pose a danger to you or other drivers if left unrepaired. When you buy a used car, there’s no guarantee that its history has been disclosed honestly or entirely. That’s why it’s essential to understand what qualifies as an official safety recall before buying anything used – especially if it is secondhand from a private seller instead of an established dealer with supporting paperwork. Read on for everything you need to know about vehicle safety recalls and how they can help keep you safe on the road.
A vehicle safety recall is a formal government-ordered recall of a car model due to a safety defect. In Australia, these are handled by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts (DITRDC). They’re generally triggered by a defect that has resulted in significant numbers of car owners reporting problems. That’s why recalls will often appear in the news – to alert drivers to the issue. The DITRDC also publishes a list of all current recalls on its website so that drivers can check if their car is affected.
During a safety recall, the manufacturer must repair the problem free of charge. You should be contacted by the same people who typically handle service appointments so they can arrange repairs at no cost to you. If you don’t take advantage of that service, you could be putting yourself and others at risk.
In most cases, automakers will voluntarily initiate a safety recall without being formally ordered to do so. In other words, they’ll take their own initiative to make repairs based on their own assessment of the problem. Automakers have access to the DITRDC's “Vehicle Safety” database. It’s a public list of every safety recall that’s been ordered by the government.
There are two reasons why you should care about vehicle safety recalls. First, being aware of safety recalls can save you money. When a problem has been identified by the manufacturer and reported to the DITRDC, it’s doubtful that it is a result of negligence on your part. In other words, you’re almost always covered by the standard warranty on your car. Recalls are also an important safety feature that can save your life and the lives of others. The sooner a manufacturer knows about a problem, the sooner it can initiate a recall to repair it.
For a vehicle to be recalled, it must pass through a formal investigation process. The first step is for the DITRDC to receive and record a “recall petition” from an automaker. This is basically a request for a formal investigation into a particular problem.Once a formal investigation is initiated, the DITRDC will look into the problem to assess whether it is a defect that needs a total recall. In most cases, this will involve gathering data from the complaint logs of the automaker as well as any reports made to the DITRDC itself.
For the sake of your safety and the safety of others, you should always tune in to the latest safety recalls. If your car has been affected, take it in for repairs immediately. If it’s been a while since the recall was issued, you can still take your vehicle in and let the mechanics know that you expect the issue to be resolved. If you receive a notice about a recall but aren’t sure what to do about it, you can always check the DITRDC website. There, you’ll find clear instructions on what to do next.
Vehicle safety recalls are issued for a reason – to keep people safe behind the wheel. It’s important to know what to look for, and it's more important to make sure your car is repaired as soon as possible. Every year, hundreds of people are injured or killed due to vehicle defects. When a safety recall is issued, it’s not just an attempt to fix a problem; it’s an attempt to prevent those same problems from causing a tragedy.
You can visit Australian Government's Vehicle Recalls website to find out if your vehicle or component has been recalled because of a safety risk.
