Quarter of Recalled American Cars Are Not Fixed

As many as 25% of all recalled automobiles in the United States are not fixed, which means that millions of cars continue to be operated even though they contain potentially dangerous defects.

In many cases, people are not even aware of recalls. Manufacturers make it a point to contact car owners, and mail them recall notices. However, many consumers in Thousand Oaks dispose of this mail, believing it to be junk mail. That means a motorist may not even be aware of any recall involving his vehicle and could be at risk of an accident.

Even when a motorist is aware of a recall, he may not necessarily believe it involves a serious problem. The growing number of recalls in the auto industry is one of the reasons for this. When people are exposed to a seemingly large volume of recall alerts, they are less likely to believe that the recall affecting their vehicle is a serious problem. They, therefore, choose to simply ignore the recall, with possibly dangerous consequences.

According to Carfax, the numbers are really serious. There are as many as 36 million cars currently traveling on American roads that have been recalled, but not yet fixed. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the average completion rate for recalls in the United States is approximately 75%. But in the case of older cars, the numbers are much lower. Owners of older automobiles may be much less likely to become aware of a recall, or to take the car in when there has been a recall.

Automobile manufacturers have begun to understand the scope of the problem here. They are working on their own to boost recall response. For instance, Chrysler Group recently began using a system that involves e-mail and phone calls to remind customers to increase recall response rates. As a result of those strategies, the company’s recall response rates shot up to 80%. Other automakers are also experimenting with similar strategies.