NJ wants to make it impossible for you to miss a recall on your vehicle

⚫ A proposed law says you'd have to be notified of a recall in multiple ways

⚫ Other states have already made the move

⚫ Too many vehicle recalls are missed or ignored today, advocates say

You couldn't miss a recall notice for your vehicle if you tried, under a proposed law moving through the New Jersey Legislature.

Through the bill, more effort would be made to ensure you're well aware that there's a safety issue with your car or truck, and a free repair is available.

Today when there's a recall, you'd get a letter in the mail from the manufacturer, as long as the company knows you're the owner.

Under the bill that's now been approved by two Senate committees, you'd be reminded of any open recalls on your vehicle any time you bring it in for inspection, whether that's at an official Motor Vehicle Commission agency or a private facility.

Also, the MVC would have to notify vehicle owners of recalls when the vehicle is being registered and every time a notice goes out about yearly renewal.

Recalls are missed, ignored

According to Craig Orlan, of the American Honda Motor Company, about a quarter of vehicle owners never take advantage of free repairs offered through recall notices. So, more than 600,000 vehicles on New Jersey's roads are running with a critical safety defect, he said.

"We believe that engaging the MVC and inspection facilities as a partner by having them provide supplemental notice of these defects is the single best way to improve recall completion rates," Orlan told the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.

Such a move has been put in place by a handful of states. According to Orlan, it has resulted in a 40% increase in recall completion rates.

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If the bill were to become law, the MVC and private facilities would have access to a database — searchable by VIN — that shows whether a vehicle has open recalls that have not been addressed.

According to industry advocates, consumers may not know about recalls because they didn't make the vehicle purchase from a dealer, or they're moving from home to home and the mailed message never reached them.

As of now, it's unknown how much it would cost New Jersey to implement the change. According to the Office of Legislative Services, it's unclear whether additional staff or computer programming changes would be needed to provide the extra notice to consumers.

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