More than 1 million vehicles were recalled last year due to safety critical defects. Vehicle recalls in the UK are actions taken by manufacturers to address safety-related defects or non-compliance with regulations in vehicles. When a defect is identified that poses a risk to drivers, passengers, or other road users, the manufacturer initiates a recall.
The Recall Notification Process
The vehicle recall process typically involves notifying affected vehicle owners, conducting necessary repairs or replacements, and ensuring the issue is resolved. Recalls are important to ensure the safety of vehicles on UK roads and are often carried out voluntarily by manufacturers or mandated by regulatory authorities. Owners are encouraged to promptly respond to recall notices to have their vehicles repaired or inspected free of charge.
How to get a FREE Car Recall Check
Checking if your vehicle has outstanding recalls used to be expensive and required access to the VIN. Not anymore. It is now possible to check for recalls using just the vehicle’s registration number – and it’s FREE.
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FREE – Vehicle recall checking service
The GOV.uk website provides free access to the DVSA’s database of vehicular recalls. Simply enter your car’s registration number (VRM) and get instant access to recalls related to your vehicle. Click the button below to visit GOV.uk > recalls.
Please note – GOV.uk provide the following caveat … “There can be a delay before we receive information about safety recalls. If you are concerned, contact your vehicle manufacturer’s dealership“
No recalls – but you’ve heard rumours ….
It is possible that the reason you are researching recalls against your vehicle is because it was featured on the TV, radio or a website. If you have tried the FREE GOV.uk recall service and it says there are no recalls you can take the matter further if you want complete peace of mind.
Speak to your dealer
To be 100% certain call your local dealer with the car’s VIN from the V5 document. I did this on my Volvo XC60 and it saved me £600 on a local garage’s repair estimate. It wasn’t a “recall” as such – but an issue with the EGR valve that Volvo had agreed to repair on “recently” out of warranty vehicles. Neither the GOV.uk nor the HPI Recall checking service provided information on this EGR valve repair – we assume because it is not a safety critical recall.
Why Pay – when it’s FREE
We entered our car’s registration number in to both the FREE GOV.uk lookup service and the HPI Recall check – £2.99 when purchased (April 2019). Interested to see if there was any difference in the level of reporting. As can be seen from the screen captures below – there was no additional information provided by HPI recall service versus the free GOV.uk one.
So why do some companies charge?
Many companies HPI Check included – have provided a recall lookup service for several years, long before GOV.uk offered it for free. We actually used the online CHAT on HPI’s website to ask whether or not recall data is covered under the popular HPI Check service. The answer was NO – but they said they do offer a recall checking service for £2.99 – however – they went on to point out the same information was available for FREE from GOV.uk (link then provided). Well done HPI for being honest and transparent.
GOV.uk - Recall service (FREE)
HPI Check - Recall service (£2.99)
Check GOV.uk DVSA Recalls
Click the button below to go directly to the GOV.uk website. Enter your car’s VRM (registration number) for access to the DVSA recall data held against your vehicle
Is your car insured?
You won’t be able to get vehicle tax without valid insurance. The penalty for driving without valid insurance is often higher than driving an untaxed vehicle. It’s easy to forget whether you have renewed your car insurance, especially if you have several vehicles. Use the AskMID service to check your car’s insurance status – FREE car insurance checker