What to do about a recall?

Is your vehicle being recalled? Did you just find out about it on the news are now you are not sure what to do? Don’t worry, there are a few steps you can follow that will make dealing with a recall that much easier. The best place to start is not to panic.

The way recalls are announced certainly do not help in putting us at ease. Usually, sites all over the country and sometimes the world will begin breaking a story about a massive recall that affects thousands and thousands of models even before you knew there was problem. And then, all you have to go on are numbers, but rarely a confirmation that your specific vehicle is affected, and what to do.

So again, the first step is to breathe. Remind yourself firstly that chances are very good the recall does not affect the safety of your vehicle. Indeed, most recalls are voluntary and touch upon secondary parts that, although important, do not put you in harm’s way if they fail.

There have been numerous very important recalls in recent years, and some of them lead to severe injuries, but they are the exception not the norm. Moreover, if the recall does impact the vehicle’s safety, more often than not you will quickly be instructed by the manufacturer to stop driving the vehicle.

The next step is to wait for the recall notice which should arrive within the next couple of weeks but at the very least in the next sixty days. Now, you have make sure that the manufacturer has your up-to-date contact information.

If you are not sure, you can always contact your dealer and they will be able to fill you in. If you want to know if your vehicle is affected by a recall, you can always have a look at the following website.

Thank you to Morrey Nissan of Coquitlam for their help with this article.