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
Incident date: Aug 17, 2024
The contact owns a 2022 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V646000 (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 manufactu... Read more
Incident date: Oct 18, 2024
I'm not sure but this remedy is taking almost a year so I'm reporting it again. I did over the phone last month.
CHRYSLER
PACIFICA PLUG-IN HYBRID
(2018) - AIR BAGS
Oct 17, 2024
Incident date: Oct 17, 2024
Airbag light is deployed when passenger is sitting in seat. Module under seat is not recognizing the passenger and airbags are turned off. This is a safety concern in likeliness of an accident the passenger could be injured.
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
The contact owned a 2022 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while slowing down to stop a second vehicle traveling approximately 50 MPH, crashed into the rear of the vehicle. During the crash, the contact's vehicle was pushed into the rear of a third vehicle causing severe damage to the vehicle's frontend. The contact indicated that the front driver and passenger side air bags did not deploy and ... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Oct 17, 2024
I was driving for work and got into a pretty bad accident and the airbags did not deploy. I am not sure if it was because the airbag recall I got fixed back in 2020 or it was because the damages weren’t enough to deploy the airbags.
Crash
4 injured
Incident date: Sep 5, 2024
This is not accident related, but what appears to be a systemic issue related to Cayenne and Macan leather dashboards. The issue is related to delamination of the leather dash cover that can impede the safe deployment of the passenger airbag. Many cars are affected and the repair can be a significant expense to owners (~$10K) for vehicles less than 8 years old. There should be a recall to address ... Read more
Incident date: Aug 21, 2024
airbag inspection light comes on. Dealer verified vehicle has defective passenger harness and or seat cushion. Replaced harness under passenger seat in July 24, now Oct 24 airbag inspection light is back on. The 2014 has the same WUM 98 harness kit and seat sensor, so why isn't the 2014 Subaru Forrester included in the WUM 98 recall?
Incident date: Jul 23, 2024
The contact owns a 2006 Pontiac Solstice. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V061000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The air bag warning light was illuminated. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure.... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
Got warning about front drivers safety restraint failure on screen. Airbag warning began to display on the side showing if an accident occurred, they would not deploy. Talked with Tesla representatives and was told this is a known issue but would not be covered. Seems to be faulty wiring from chair moving over time based on what I was able to read. Error code was rcm_a021.
Incident date: Sep 16, 2024
Right side (passenger) curtain airbags deployed for unknown reason when engine was started while car was parked in garage. Heard explosive noise as bags deployed and smoke appeared in car interior.
Incident date: Oct 1, 2024
Airbag failed to deploy on a complete front end collision with a -28 maximum delta-v, longitudinal (MPH [km/h]) at 100 milliseconds. Front airbag warning lamp was "Off"
Crash
2 deaths
JEEP
GRAND WAGONEER
(2022) - AIR BAGS
Oct 16, 2024
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
I was involved in a accident in which my car had stalled on me in the middle of a intersection and I was hit by on coming traffic and I also got hit by a truck on my left hand side which had been just repaired by someone who was certified and pay through insurance company when I got my vehicle back the ads light was on my dash as well I was hurt And the airbags split open my lips and my head
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 13, 2024
Due to a small coffee spill srs light for front and back were triggered, with the potential of having air bags deployed, this is a defect that needs to be addressed. There was a class acton lawsuit that has since been concluded, but how about for new owners of old vehicles. This should be a safety concern.
Incident date: May 16, 2023
I was backing out of an outdoor shopping center slot located at the end by the curb. I had to attempt this three times due to traffic and another car that was also trying to back out. On my third attempt, I hit the curb with my passenger rear wheel. When I changed gear to move forward, the ID4 jerked violently three times. At this point my hands were on the wheel and my feet were not on either the... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Oct 9, 2024
The contact owned a 2023 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving at 60 MPH and the vehicle hydroplaned and rolled over eight times. The contact stated that none of the air bags were deployed. In addition, the contact stated that the failure occurred while it was raining. The contact stated that his mother and his pets were passengers in the vehicle at the time. The contact sustained inj... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Aug 14, 2024
Drivers side head restraint deployed when sitting parked in car striking my wife in head car was not running. Contacted dealer states no idea when part can come contacted jeep told to look for part on internet fix myself there is a safety recall on this issue and I am unable to get this resolved thru jeep and dealer
Incident date: Oct 2, 2024
Since January 2024, my vehicle has been recalled. They said there would be a remedy by Q3. We called Toyota Dealership in Irving TX and they said next month. We feel blown off and unsafe considering this is an issue that's been almost a year. It's also Q4. Please help us get this rectified as soon as possible. I would truly appreciate your help.
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2014 Buick Enclave. 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 exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The air bag warning light was illuminated. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The... Read more
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light had illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local independent mechanic where the contact was advised to take to vehicle to a local dealer. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the passenger side door air bag needed to be replaced.... Read more
GMC
SIERRA 1500
(2024) - AIR BAGS
Oct 16, 2024
Incident date: Feb 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 30 MPH, the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an auto repair shop where it was diagnosed that the rear driver-side and passenger-side air bag retractors were inoperable and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referr... Read more
Incident date: Jun 3, 2024
Hi, This car has had a recall since 12/20/23. Toyota still has no fix for us. I have this car on the TURO rental platform, but they unlisted my car because of this recall. I want to file a complaint on Toyota for not offering me a fix and killing my business. Is they any way to put a hold on this until a fix comes out? TY [XXX] Dec 20,2023 Manufacturer Recall Number23TB15 NHTSA Recall Number23... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated while driving at 25 MPH, the front driver's side air bag and the driver's side curtain air bags suddenly deployed without impact. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent or dealer. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact was awaiting a response from the manufacturer. The failure mileage was approxim... Read more
HYUNDAI
GENESIS COUPE
(2013) - AIR BAGS
Oct 16, 2024
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000(Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. No further information was provided. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experi... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2021) - AIR BAGS
Oct 16, 2024
Incident date: Oct 16, 2024
car has a passenger safety restraint fault, got quote to replace a sensor for $455 parts and labor. when reading online, this appears to be a common failure in these vehicles and if you don't get repaired, air bags / seat belt restraint may not work properly. seems like should be a recall for this.
Incident date: Apr 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V464000(Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An unknown local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. The manufacturer was mad... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Lexus RX 350. 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
CHEVROLET
SILVERADO 1500
(2023) - AIR BAGS
Oct 16, 2024
Incident date: Apr 1, 2024
Dashboard leather shrunk. If the vehicle gets into an accident the airbags might not deploy correctly. Very common issue on the cayenne models.
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
STEERING WHEEL AIRBAG DID NOT DEPLOY DURING AN ACCIDENT. THE SIDE AIBAGS DID DEPLOYED. CAR WAS GOING 55MPH AND COLIDED INTO ANOTHER CAR WITH FRONT PASSENGER SIDE TOOK MAJORITY OF THE FORCE.
Crash
2 injured
HYUNDAI
SANTA CRUZ
(2023) - AIR BAGS
Oct 15, 2024
Incident date: Oct 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Highlander. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (AIR BAGS) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer 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. Parts distribution disconnect.
Incident date: Oct 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Camry. The contact received NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (AIR BAGS) in February 2024 however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. 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 confirmed that parts were... Read more
HYUNDAI
SANTA CRUZ
(2024) - AIR BAGS
Oct 15, 2024
Incident date: Oct 8, 2024
I have called Leith Lincoln in Raleigh twice in less than 30 days to report an alert that continues to come through on my Lincoln app about the airbags. The airbag light comes on-on the dashboard even when there is not a passenger in the seat. The Restraints Indicator Lamp Warning comes on and remains on for an ample amount of time. The alert on the app states that "your airbag warning is on due t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
Driver 1 will be the Hyundai Santa Cruz traveling northbound on [XXX] at [XXX] . Driver 2 crossed [XXX] 1 directly in front of my vehicle causing extensive damage to the vehicle as well as injuries to the occupants. Vehicle 1 was [XXX] months old at the time. NO AIRBAGS DEPLOYED! All airbags of the #2 vehicle deployed, ALL. Driver 1, was driving 45 mph northbound and never had a chance to slow... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Oct 10, 2024
Driver 1 will be the Hyundai Santa Cruz traveling northbound on [XXX] at [XXX] . Driver 2 crossed [XXX] 1 directly in front of my vehicle causing extensive damage to the vehicle as well as injuries to the occupants. Vehicle 1 was [XXX] months old at the time. NO AIRBAGS DEPLOYED! All airbags of the #2 vehicle deployed, ALL. Driver 1, was driving 45 mph northbound and never had a chance to slow... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated while the driver was idling in an intersection and making a left turn, another vehicle crashed into the front passenger side of the vehicle causing it to turn 180 degrees during the impact. The air bags did not deploy. The bumper detached during the crash. The vehicle was towed to the residence. A dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
KIA
SPORTAGE PHEV
(2024) - AIR BAGS
Oct 15, 2024
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
Front Passenger Safety Restraint System Fault error. Tesla is indicating this is out of warranty but seems this is a very pervasive issue with an important safety mechanism on the car.
Incident date: Aug 10, 2024
The contact owned a 2024 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle was struck on the passenger side of the vehicle by another vehicle. In addition, the contact stated that the air bags did not deploy. No warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot. The vehicle was diagnosed by a Toyota service specialist however no failures were id... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 13, 2024
My husband had an accident on 8/10/24 where adverse driver ran a red light at high speeds and struck this vehicle he was while driving impacting front end and both sides of car and airbags failed to deploy! He sustained a permanent disabling injury to his left shoulder.
Crash
1 injured
CONTINENTAL
SPORT CONTACT
(9999) - AIR BAGS
Oct 15, 2024
Incident date: Aug 25, 2024
Most the time my passenger airbag will not detect someone sitting there. However, when it does, it will shut off and on.
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
The contact owns a 2024 Lexus TX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V461000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer 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 confirm parts unavailable.
Incident date: Jan 15, 2020
was at a stop in the middle lane going to turn left, got hit straight head on by a driver driving in the middle lane. his air bags deployed, none of mine deployed. the front end and drivers side of the subaru was impacted
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Oct 7, 2024
The contact owns a 2023 Jeep Wagoneer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was an abnormal rattling sound detected. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V199000 (Air Bag, Steering). The contact called the local dealer, who informed her there was no recall or warranty coverage. The vehicle ... Read more
CHRYSLER
TOWN AND COUNTRY
(2014) - AIR BAGS
Oct 15, 2024
Incident date: Sep 1, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated, and the air bag was not activated message was displayed. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70, 000.
Incident date: Apr 15, 2024
Sept. 9, 2024 - called local dealer to schedule repair. Parts were not yet available. Placed on a list for them to call when the parts were available. October 15, 2024 - called dealer again. No parts have been received. ETA unknown. Confirmed I was still on the list.
Incident date: Aug 14, 2023
The contact owns a 2020 Honda Ridgeline. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V064000(AIR BAGS) and 24V321000(BACK OVER PREVENTION); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall rep... Read more
MERCEDES-BENZ
GLA 250
(2016) - AIR BAGS
Oct 14, 2024
Incident date: Oct 9, 2024
Noting that prior to this we only had one issue with transmission and we did the flush and it did fine for several thousand of miles. Fast forward to a few days ago. As I was driving down the highway I came to a stop at the red light. Once it was green and I pressed on the accelerator with my foot per usual. And it did not move it pushed the gas peddle and nothing at all happened. I was stuck in t... Read more
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
AIRBAG SYSTEM SERVICE REQUIRED message appears on dash. Occurred on 09/20/2018 and again on 09/29/2023. Both times required service to fix. Has now happened again on 10/14/2024. Secondary issue was reported by another driver for same vehicle for NHTSA ID Number: 11339357 and NHTSA ID Number: 11567379
Incident date: Oct 14, 2024
I had a reoccurrence of Incident 11609414. After the original incident I had my car towed to the service center and "fixed". I paid out of pocket since my warranty did not cover the problem they claimed that caused my issues. 5 weeks later I had the same issue recur, while out shopping. My car would not shift into park, the emergency brake failed, my seat restraint failed, my airbag failed, my ABS... Read more
Incident date: Sep 5, 2023
I pulled into a driveway on a one lane road (due to construction) to allow a car traveling downhill to pass so they would not have to back up. I had come to a complete stop in the driveway with the car in drive. As I started to put the car in reverse it surged forward at a high rate of speed crashing into my neighbor's garage, tearing the door completely down pushing the door into the garage and m... Read more
Incident date: Sep 5, 2023
There is a recall on our passenger side air bag - NHTSARecall #23V-865. Toyota recall#23TA15 Bellingham Toyota verified this - and we have an indicator/problem light that is on. I am very upset becuase we were told a fix would be available in 3rd qtr 2024 and now it is 4th qtr 2024. When I called Toyota headquarters, they have no answer as to when there will be a fix. They offered a loaner - howev... Read more
Incident date: Oct 11, 2024
Airbag light is on dashboard indicating system is not operating