Pro Tip: Streamlining Your Recall Management Process For A Safer Fleet

Streamlining Your Recall Management Process For A Safer Fleet

Arthur Kappel, Director – Fleet Operations, Altice USA

On any given morning fleet managers can wake up to a news report discovering their fleet may have a serious safety concern due to a vehicle recall.

Additionally, depending on the magnitude of the recall, new vehicle orders could be impacted or delayed. We may also be challenged with long lead times to correct recalls
due to dealer labor capacity or part shortages.

As vehicle recalls seem to be surfacing more frequently it is important to have a plan to correct them as part of your company’s safety culture.

Fleet professionals must take steps to ensure they are quickly informed as well as having an established process for managing through recall resolution. Here are some steps you can take to minimize your fleet’s exposure.

Identifying Open Recalls

• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) – This is a valuable resource for vehicle recall information. Anyone can subscribe to the Recall Notification email
  system (https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/nhtsa/subscriptions).
• Manufacturers – Most OEMs can take a list of your current VINs and provide back to you a listing of open recalls.
• Recall Subscription Services – There are services that allow for bulk upload and the return of open recalls on your fleet (i.e. Carfax). Additionally, your fleet management company may already have your fleet subscribed to a recall tracking service. Both may also provide valuable recall reporting and communication tools.

Executing a Solution

• Communicate – Ensure drivers and management are not only notified of the recall but also understand the potential risks of not having them addressed. This is all about putting safety first.
• Partner with OEMs – Work with manufacturers to see how best to prioritize recalls or what
  opportunities you may have to partner towards a solution.
• Recall Repairs Performed at Your Facilities – If you have a high concentration of vehicles in one location, it may make sense for dealers' technicians to come to you (so long as the recall can still be performed properly). If you have an in-house shop authorized to perform factory warranty repairs and claims, your OEM may also allow for some recalls to be handled by your technicians.

Managing Information

• Tracking Progress – Through the same methods above it is important to monitor
  progress until we close the loop on completing recalls. It is easy for drivers to ignore recalls in need of resolution when it may not be a noticeable issue yet. Some key performance indicators to monitor are total recalls outstanding by time as well as by manufacturer in order to prioritize actions in your recall resolution plan.

Did you know that more than one-in-five vehicles has an open, unrepaired safety recall?

The National Safety Council wants to help NAFA members check their fleet vehicles as well as workers’ personal vehicles to make sure that they are not under an active recall. NSC has access to a free bulk VIN lookup tool and can search up to 10,000 vehicles at once (excluding semi-trucks). Please contact NSC Senior Program Manager Tom Musick at (630) 775-2381 or tom.musick@nsc.org for more information.

In addition, please encourage all employees to check their vehicles’ recall status within minutes at www.CheckToProtect.org.

NAFAConnection welcomes your tips for improving fleet processes, solving problems, growing results, and promoting your role in your organization’s success. Submit your Pro Tips to: editorial@nafa.org.