Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,245,377 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA, including 140,173 crashes, 56,794 fires, and 8,580 deaths.
What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?
A consumer complaint is a free-form report filed by a vehicle owner directly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describing a safety concern about their vehicle. NHTSA collects these reports through its Vehicle Owner Defect Report (VOQ) system and publishes them publicly. Each complaint includes the affected component, the date and circumstances of the incident, whether the failure caused a crash or fire, and any reported injuries or deaths. The owner's full narrative description is included verbatim, NHTSA does not edit or moderate the descriptions.
The database below contains over 2,245,377 individual complaints. NHTSA's investigators monitor it for clusters of similar reports, when enough owners describe the same failure mode on the same vehicle, NHTSA may open a Preliminary Evaluation that can lead to a recall. Many of the largest recalls in U.S. history, including the Takata airbag recall and the Hyundai/Kia engine fire recalls, started as patterns visible in this complaint database years before they became formal recalls.
How to interpret what you read
A few principles for reading consumer complaints usefully:
- One complaint is anecdote; a hundred similar complaints is data. NHTSA does not investigate the truthfulness of any individual report, that's the job of the Office of Defects Investigation, which looks at the full pattern. When evaluating a vehicle, look for whether multiple owners describe the same chain of events.
- Crash, fire, injury, and death flags are owner-set. They are not verified by NHTSA. They are still useful as a filter, because owners who tick those boxes are typically reporting more serious incidents than those who don't.
- Component categories are NHTSA-assigned, not owner-assigned. NHTSA standardizes the component field so that complaints can be aggregated. The owner narrative often goes into more detail than the component category captures.
- Complaint volume scales with sales volume. A best-selling model will accumulate more raw complaints than a niche model even at the same defect rate. To compare across vehicles, look at complaints per 100,000 units sold, not raw counts.
If you've experienced a defect
File a complaint. NHTSA's investigators rely on this database to detect emerging defects, and useful complaints, specific, concrete, with dates and mileage and clear descriptions of what happened, feed directly into the agency's pattern detection. The form takes about 10 minutes and is at nhtsa.gov/recalls under "Report a Safety Problem." Your complaint becomes part of the same public record that this page is built from. Owners filing detailed VOQs are how recalls get triggered.
Read more from our blog
Showing 129,250 complaints - component: AIR BAGS
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2023) - AIR BAGS
Dec 13, 2024
Incident date: Oct 21, 2024
I purchased the above-referenced car in July 2020 almost immediately after purchase the indicator light came on with Chasis failure and the car lowered to a safe distance to the ground. Unbeknownst to me the car had been declared unsafe to drive previously. The airbags had been deployed and placed backward the front sensors were painted over and not operable. I had to take legal action against fou... Read more
Incident date: Dec 1, 2024
The sunroofs have a drain which sometimes can plug up. This car was maintained several times a year since purchase by Toyota dealer. When the drain plugged up this fall, water backed up and came down inside of the passenger compartment on top of the electrical fuses, body computer. The leak IS NOT DETECTABLE by owner or occupant. But when it manifests itself, it does so with the Blind Spot Mo... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2024
I am driving a 2015 Dodge Journey. Randomly, the airbag light came on, followed by loss of all electronics on the steering wheel. The horn will not work, nor any of the switches on the steering wheel. I did find that this is a common issue with Dodge Vehicles under recall 18V332000 AND 17V432000. I was told at the dealership that my specific dodge journey did not group into that recall however is ... Read more
GREENPOWER
EV STAR BUS
(2019) - AIR BAGS
Dec 13, 2024
Incident date: Dec 6, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Passat. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V834000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced... Read more
Incident date: Dec 13, 2024
The contact owned a 2008 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH while in cruise control, a group of birds flew out from under a ditch which caused the contact to swerve and lose control of the vehicle. As a result of the incident, the contact crashed into the ditch. The air bags did not deploy upon impact which caused the contact's face to hit the steering wheel. The con... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Aug 22, 2017
The contact owns a 2021 Honda Odyssey. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted, and the contact was informed that vehicles with present failures were being prioritized for the recall repair. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amou... Read more
Incident date: Dec 13, 2024
The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Passat. The contact was notified of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V834000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
Still waiting to get the repair done on this recall,it's been since May 2023 and still not fixed..This isn't in a timely matter.Just glad nothing has happened yet to injure my wife from this defect.
Incident date: Dec 11, 2024
I was in an accident on December 9 at 2 pm it was slightly wet out & 51 degrees i was making a left turn out of a business went into the middle lane and gave some gas to merge into the lane and the back end of the vehicle locked up and swung into a tail spin to the right as I applied the brakes it locked up worse and the vehicle spun around twice. Went into oncoming traffic and was hit. Had to exi... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Transit. The contact stated that the AWD and air bag warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the actuator and sensor needed to be replaced, and a software update needed to be performed. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The dealer determined that the transfer switch, new ai... Read more
Incident date: Dec 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the master warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer for routine service; however, the vehicle was not repaired. ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The airbag system, brake system, and HVAC system (air conditioning and heating) appear to have malfunctioned. A dealer confirmed that the HVAC system is defective, identifying a broken evaporator assembly and a faulty temperature door actuator. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 18, 2024
On 11-21-24, I was traveling down the interstate going at 60mph when a car began to urgently brake, I proceeded to hit the brakes as well and my car would not stop, at the time of the impact no air bag deployed, driver seat belt did not lock, my driver seat moved, no pre-collision assist came up for this accident. No prior issues or lights on dash.
Crash
Incident date: Aug 7, 2024
Product recall caused multiple accidents in vehicle resulting in permanent injuries
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
My vehicles airbag has yet to be replaced, I have 2 kids that get into that car. I need to make my car safe, and not get them hurt. We would like to have my airbag fixed asap, as it's been on recall for almost 2 years.
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
The Service Air Bags indicator has been on for 3 years and I have tried to get this taken care of with Buick, East Side Madison as I have indicated on another complaint form December 06 2024 NHTSA ID Number: 11629225. Now, today my daughter tried to open the door and the car's electrical system went haywire and would not let her out. I had to manually get a key to unlock the door. The electrica... Read more
Incident date: Nov 20, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Lexus RX350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienc... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Chrysler 300. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V198000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts... Read more
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
There is a problem with the passenger airbag sensor on this model. I weigh under 100 pounds, and the sensor light does not turn on when I am seated in the passenger seat. My husband weighs 160 lbs, and the light goes on when he sits in the passenger seat. Subaru maintains that the sensor is working as designed, but this is clearly a safety issue.
Incident date: Nov 4, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Honda Civic. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V744000 (Steering) and 24V064000 (Air Bags); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a fa... Read more
Incident date: Jan 19, 2024
On almost all r56 model mini coopers the passenger seat occupancy sensor has a major malfunction that causes it to fail and pop up an airbag sensor light even when someone is sitting in the seat, Mini USA did not issue a recall but rather a reimbursement form for owners in 2017 the last year of production for that car and did not publicly disclose this. I feel as though this should be a recall as ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Avalon Hybrid. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confir... Read more
LAND ROVER
RANGE ROVER
(2018) - AIR BAGS
Dec 11, 2024
Incident date: Jun 22, 2021
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Rav4. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the remedy was not available till June 2025. The manufacturer ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Outback. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V227000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts n... Read more
Incident date: Oct 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2025 Honda Civic. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V763000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 24V744000 (Steering) however, the part to do the recall repairs was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while their son was driving approximately 20 MPH attemptin... Read more
Crash
TOYOTA
HIGHLANDER
(2018) - AIR BAGS
Dec 11, 2024
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
My parking brake has stopped working/is completely locked up (like what is descrived in the recall, but my vin isn't included in thr recall list), and the airbags were missing at time of sell.
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
1. Passenger (next to driver) side no-belt warning is not working. Seat belt warning is not shown even when the passenger (adult) does not wear belt. It is consistently reproducible even when the vehicle is at highway speeds. 2. Passenger side airbag is always OFF even when there is a passenger seated with their seat belt on. I purchased this vehicle in April'2024 and have been consistently hav... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
EQS 580
(2024) - AIR BAGS
Dec 10, 2024
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
I own a 2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport that more recently in June 2024 received a recall on its Passenger Airbags stating that it may not function properly in event of a crash. I want to point out that this is the only vehicle in the family and teenagers do ride in the front seat. I was informed of the recall via my Progressive App in June 2024 and Volkswagen who issued the recall did not infor... Read more
FORD
BRONCO SPORT
(2021) - AIR BAGS
Dec 10, 2024
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 39,144.
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
I own a 2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport that more recently in June 2024 received a recall on its Passenger Airbags stating that it may not function properly in event of a crash. I want to point out that this is the only vehicle in the family and teenagers do ride in the front seat. I was informed of the recall via my Progressive App in June 2024 and Volkswagen who issued the recall did not infor... Read more
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
Hello, I purchased my Infiniti Q60 Red Sport brand new in 2028. About a year after that I started to have electrical issues with the car. I've brought it in to the Infiniti dealer in Valencia, CA numerous times during the warranty period (and a few times out of the warranty period), to have these issues addressed. Some were resolved and some were not. So In the past 4-5 years I've brought my vehic... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
JETTA
(2023) - AIR BAGS
Dec 10, 2024
Incident date: Jan 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 Dodge Charger. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V198000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts no... Read more
LAND ROVER
RANGE ROVER
(2012) - AIR BAGS
Dec 10, 2024
Incident date: Nov 18, 2024
The steering wheel clock spring fail and jeep has always given me hassles at the dealership and it was not convenient to where I lived. So I had my local shop fix it. They asked me where and why I got it fixed somewhere else and I answered. They even have a reimbursement from for work done by other shops and they outright denied my claim. I drove a year with no airbag because they installed faulty... Read more
Incident date: Dec 3, 2024
During this summer (2024), I got a warning with three beeps then warning lights came on, went off for a several months, and now have come on and stayed on (ABS, TRACTION CONTROL, BRAKE, AIRBAG, Tire Pressure). This has to be an issue with VW. There was close to 63,000 miles on the car at the time. Now there's only 64,000 miles on the car. The dealer service center couldn't really determine the cau... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2020 BMW X5. The contact stated that the message "Driver Restraint System Malfunction" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the driver’s side knee air bags needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not covered under war... Read more
Incident date: Nov 4, 2024
The contact owned a 2020 Ford Edge. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH for unknown reasons, she crashed head-on with an unknown Dodge. The steering air bag did not deploy. The top edge of the air bag was activated but did not fully deploy. The contact sustained injuries to the right side of the knee, back nerve, right shoulder, and neck, and permanent knee bruises, and medical attention ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2022) - AIR BAGS
Dec 10, 2024
Incident date: Nov 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, a second vehicle crashed into the rear of the vehicle. The contact indicated that during the crash no air bags were deployed and the front driver and front passenger seat belts did not retract. After the incident, the front driver's side and front passenger side seat belts remained inoperable and t... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 10, 2024
I was in a bad frontal/passenger front wreck and none of my airbags deployed
Crash
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
Second email and attempt Truck is sitting untouched after a major accident. Please reach back [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 25, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLE 450E 4MATIC
(2025) - AIR BAGS
Dec 9, 2024
Incident date: Dec 8, 2024
My passenger airbag sensor malfunctioned and the repair is over two thousand dollars. The car is only 6 years old and I believe airbags should last longer than 6 years. BMW has extended warranties for airbags on some models (mine not included) for 15 years without mileage limitation. If a collision occurs, my passenger would be in extreme danger.
Incident date: Dec 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while in reverse (R), an unknown warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the air bag warning light was illuminated, and the contact was advised to see the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Lexus RX350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not ... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2024
On January of 2024 I received a letter from Honda informing me that my vehicle was affected by a recall regardimg a seat sensor of the airbag. I contacted the dealership to get the recall fixed because my vehicle is used for a car rental business and with the recall I am not able to operate the vehicle for rental purposes. I was told by my local dealer that if my dash oard light is not on they can... Read more
Incident date: Nov 27, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Acura MDX. The contact stated that at an idle stop, he allowed another vehicle to complete a turn. As the contact depressed the accelerator pedal to make a left turn, the vehicle came to an abrupt stop which caused the vehicle to be rear ended by another vehicle. The air bags did not deploy upon impact. No injuries were reported and a police report was not filed. The vehicl... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Dec 9, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (AIR BAGS); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and offered to pay for a rental vehicle for the contact; however, the c... Read more
Incident date: Dec 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry Hybrid. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manuf... Read more
Incident date: Dec 8, 2024
I brought my 2021 Nissan Rogue in for service at Jenkins Nissan in Lakeland, FL for a oil change and tire rotation and we have had a light on our dash board indicating a airbag error and they charged us to look that up and said it is an airbag module or sensor that is causing the error message on the dashboard as the paper work said it is a Sensor-Side Airbag Center causing that and said it would ... Read more
JEEP
GRAND CHEROKEE 4XE
(2023) - AIR BAGS
Dec 9, 2024
Incident date: Dec 2, 2024
The PODs system is still hasn't been repaired since the recall was announced in June. I was told a fix was coming in August, but to no avail. I haven't been able to have someone in the passenger seat of the car since the recall.