From February 18 to February 24 of this year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced the recalls of millions of vehicles. Among those recalled were hundreds of thousands of Ford vehicles due to hazardous rear axle and seat belt locking concerns, and nearly 2 million Honda and Toyota vehicles for hazards relating to air bags.
Chances are that you’re either thinking, “I own a vehicle manufactured by one of those brands. I wonder if my vehicle was recalled” or you’re thinking “I don’t drive a Honda, Toyota or Ford, so why should I care?”. The reality is that even if your vehicle hasn’t been named in a recent recall, those vehicles that you drive past every single day may be affected by one or more. In this sense, recalls are literally everyone’s business.
Why staying informed is so important
You obviously don’t have control over what other motorists do if their cars have been recalled. However, you do have control over whether you respond to recall notices efficiently if your own vehicle has been affected by a defect.
Failing to respond promptly to a recall could result in suffering preventable harm. It could also result in you unintentionally causing harm to others – and incurring liability as a result – in the event of a crash. As a result, you’ll want to get in the habit of scrolling recall-related news fairly regularly.
Additionally, even if your vehicle isn’t named in recent recalls, you can keep an eye out for models that may be affected by particularly egregious defects. Ask anyone who had to drive near a Ford Pinto when this model started spontaneously combusting whether keeping your distance from a recalled vehicle inspires peace of mind and you’ll learn all you really need to know about this idea in practice.
