Over 2 million UK vehicles have outstanding manufacturer recalls
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3.2 million UK cars on the road with outstanding recalls, and the rate is climbing

RecallClear Editorial

DVSA data shows the UK's missed-recall rate has climbed from roughly 18% in 2018 to nearly 30% in 2023, leaving an estimated 3.2 million cars on the road with outstanding safety work. The biggest gaps: second and third owners, EVs that no longer visit dealers, and broken franchised-dealer follow-through.

UK safety recall completion rates have been getting worse, not better. DVSA data shows that the proportion of recalled cars that never receive their fix has climbed from around 18% in 2018 to almost 30% in 2023, leaving an estimated 3.2 million cars on the road right now with outstanding safety work.

Why owners miss recalls

  • Out-of-date owner records. Manufacturers post recall letters to the registered keeper. If the car has changed hands and the V5C is slow to update, the letter may never reach the current driver.
  • Franchised-dealer follow-through. Auto Data Solutions told Auto Express that franchised dealers are the customer's main point of contact for recall rectification, “ideally equipped to establish contact and take them through the process, but it's happening less as time goes on”.
  • EVs that skip the dealer. Electric cars need less routine servicing, which means fewer trips back to the franchised network, and fewer natural opportunities to catch outstanding recalls.
  • Fragmented data systems. SMMT, DVSA and manufacturer CRMs do not always talk to each other in real time.

What changes from August 2023

DVSA expanded its recall data feed so that outstanding recalls now appear on MOT certificates, in online MOT history checks, and in text reminder notifications. Eight major manufacturers (Toyota, Ford, Honda, MAN Trucks, MV Agusta, Hymer, Volkswagen Group and Mercedes-Benz) now supply daily data, covering 47% of vehicles with outstanding recalls.

How to check your own car

  • Once a year, at minimum. Recalls can be issued at any time. A quick check once a year, or whenever you buy a used car, is enough to catch most of them.
  • Before you buy used. Outstanding recalls can and do affect resale value. A pre-purchase check is the cheapest piece of homework you can do.
  • Use a combined source. A run a £1.99 RecallClear check queries both DVSA and SMMT against your VRM in a single £1.99 request, so you do not have to pick the right database for your brand.

We cover every UK manufacturer. You can browse our manufacturer pages for a brand-by-brand view of how recalls are reported.

Originally reported by Auto Express. RecallClear's coverage is independently written and may include additional context, verification against the DVSA and SMMT registers, and links to manufacturer pages.