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: Oct 15, 2023
The front airbags have to be replaced there is no replacement part available. My right left blinkers do not always work If airbags can't be fixed then I want them turned off, I would rather risk injury the old fashion way before airbags then to be harmed by metal
Incident date: Nov 18, 2023
The error message for air bag/seat belt warning comes on and off. It turns the passenger side air bag to off. It seems to be activated by weight on the seat.
Incident date: Dec 1, 2023
The contact's mother owns a 2014 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated when the vehicle was purchased. The seller informed the contact’s mother that it was a dummy sensor light. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags). However, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was cont... Read more
LAND ROVER
RANGE ROVER SPORT
(2011) - AIR BAGS
Dec 1, 2023
Incident date: Oct 4, 2019
The contact owns a 2014 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. The contact stated that a message advising to service the air bags was displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the driver's seat occupant detection system sensor was replaced. The veh... Read more
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2017 Hyundai Accent. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the passenger’s side air bag warning light illuminated. The contact stated that after a visual inspection of the vehicle, she became aware that the vehicle was leaking oil. The check engine warning light was also illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was diagnosed with failures to the... Read more
Incident date: Dec 23, 2022
Summary VIN [XXX] Airbag light continues to come on after beinig serviced multiple times by the dealer. 1)1-4-18 the airbag light turned on. The dealer completed $1,180.82 in repairs replacing the RCM. 2)11-6-18, a second issue occurred with the air bag light. Cost was $943.46 to replace the seat belt tensioner 3)11-12-18 CAS 16338506. On 11/23/18 the case was still under review. On 12/14... Read more
Incident date: Aug 17, 2023
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 local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made awa... Read more
KIA
OPTIMA HYBRID
(2013) - AIR BAGS
Dec 1, 2023
Incident date: Oct 15, 2023
See attached document for complaint
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was ma... Read more
Incident date: Nov 18, 2023
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 manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not av... Read more
Incident date: Aug 12, 2023
I have a lot of questions. I bought the best trim car for safety, but as a result, nothing worked. The damage to my family caused by this was a lot of damage mentally and physically, and it took a lot of time for these results to come out. That ended my view of Hyundai/Kia as a Korean American living in the U.S. I will never repurchase a Korean car. I suspect a sudden acceleration. I decided t... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
I had a medium sized doe run in front of the vehicle while on the highway. I had the adaptive cruise control set to 62 MPH with lane keeping assist and all other safety features enabled. When the deer ran out out in front of the vehicle the emergency breaking did not engage, nor did it flash the warning or make the chime. It caused major damage to the front center and drivers side of the vehicle. ... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Nov 6, 2023
Look on the original report here. “Airbag module” “If the driver airbag deploys may result in injury or death.” It’s been since May 10, 2023 and no replacement or solution.
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
The contact owns a 2004 Hyundai Sonata. The contact stated her fiance was driving 20-25 MPH on a steep hill with her in the front passenger's side seat. The contact stated that her fiance depressed the brake pedal to come to a complete stop at the stop sign, but the brake pedal went down to the floorboard, and the vehicle failed to respond. The contact's fiance veered to the left and intentionally... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Jun 22, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (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 made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a f... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2022) - AIR BAGS
Nov 30, 2023
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
We hit a deer while driving at 55 MPH. We were wearing seatbelts and not injured, it was a major frontal impact, the car is probably totalled. When we stopped we noticed multiple warning messages on the display: * restraint system failure * passenger airbag failure * pre-tensioner failure It appears that the car detected the collision and tried to activate the restraint systems, but nothing acti... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
For a few weeks in November 2023, I had my dash alarm/notify me when I would turn on my car and it would state "Airbag System Malfunction" then disappear. Potential risk with this issue is that the airbag may deploy randomly or not deploy at all if collision happens. This is extremely scary as I have a child and I commute daily for work. I have turned my car into the dealer since 11/29/23 and curr... Read more
Incident date: Nov 28, 2023
The contact owns a 2006 Honda Accord. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light was illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V501000 (Air Bags) but the VIN was not include... Read more
Incident date: Feb 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2022 Honda HR-V. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle the "brake" warning light had intermittently flashed on and off. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the brake calipers were leaking fluid and the calipers were serviced. No further information was available. Later while pulling into a parking space and pressing the brake pedal, the ped... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 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. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The... Read more
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2018) - AIR BAGS
Nov 30, 2023
Incident date: Nov 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (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 wa... Read more
Incident date: Nov 28, 2023
On Sept. 28, 2023 I was driving this car and it was on a very rough highway and it went into a skid and flipped over and was totaled. It was towed to Willow Creek, CA for one week. I was badly injured and had no way to get to Willow Creek, CA so I had to pay $500 for it to be stored and they eventually got the title of the car from me and allegedly disposed of the 2002 Accord. I did not see it ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 25, 2023
Vehicle is owned by my parents. I am his adult son [XXX] ). My father was driving. He failed to stop in time to avoid impacting the vehicle in front. Based on pictures and in-person inspection, he was traveling at a speed that should have deployed the driver's and front seat passenger's air bags. These did not deploy. The side airbag did deploy. No dashboard warnings indicated a problem wi... Read more
Crash
Incident date: Oct 15, 2022
The original airbag in my vehicle was replaced with a Takata airbag at some point (prior to my ownership) that is subject to recall, but the dealer will not replace because my VIN was not part of the recall. I have removed the airbag to verify that the part number matches the recall. It is silly to recall a part 15+ years after production and use a VIN as a means to identify affected drivers. Perh... Read more
Incident date: Nov 29, 2023
On Nov 05, at approximately 11:10pm, I was driving my RAV4 on Alafaya Trail, Orange County, Orlando. While approaching the traffic signal which had turned red, despite multiple attempts to engage the brakes, the vehicle continued moving, ultimately leading to the collision with the traffic turning left at the signal (coming from her right). The impact of the collision resulted in significant dam... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Dec 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 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. 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 exp... Read more
Incident date: Nov 19, 2023
The contact's brother-in-law owned a 2007 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while her brother-in-law was driving 60-62 MPH, her husband was sitting in the front passenger's side seat, the contact was sitting in the rear passenger's side seat and her sister was sitting in the rear driver's side seat. The contact stated that the front passenger's side end of the vehicle collapsed and hit the gr... Read more
Crash
4 injured
1 deaths
Incident date: Jun 23, 2021
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the seat belt pretensioner needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 186,228.
Incident date: Nov 15, 2023
The car set on fire causing by airbags explosion and electrical issues and I got myself burned trying to stop the fire
Fire
1 injured
Incident date: Nov 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2013 Kia Soul. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) 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 confir... Read more
Incident date: Aug 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Buick Enclave. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V334000 (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... Read more
Incident date: Jul 1, 2022
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V018000 (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. The contact stated that... Read more
Incident date: Jun 20, 2019
The contact owns a 2017 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. 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 manufac... Read more
Incident date: Nov 13, 2023
The passenger airbag does not work. The light on the dashboard indicated it needed service. When I took it into the dealer, they said it was $7,000 to fix. (More than the car is worth for resale.) After some research, I’ve come across complaints about this on multiple sites & comment boards. This is a serious safety issue. I can no longer have passengers in my car (such as my children). Somethi... Read more
Incident date: Nov 28, 2023
The contact owned a 2012 Kia Soul. The contact stated while stopped at an intersection, the vehicle independently accelerated while depressing the brake pedal. The contact steered the vehicle to the left in an attempt to stop the acceleration and repeatedly depressed the brake pedal. Due to the failure, the contact hit a curb, a sidewalk post, and finally, a retaining wall which stopped the vehicl... Read more
Crash
2 injured
Incident date: Nov 26, 2023
I called Integrity Buick of Chattanooga TN and asked about replacing the recalled airbag and was told there is no remedy and could not fix. Can the airbag not be replaced? This recall sounds dangerous and I am very concerned. What should I do about this - can this problem not be corrected? Do I have to wait until there is a fatal incident? Please advise at [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT... Read more
Incident date: Mar 15, 2021
My brother was driving his car and it was involved in a hard right front impact yesterday after a young girl pulled out in front of him. None of the airbags went off, severe front end damage on the right side to the fender, wheel, axle, radiator, hood, oil pan, and other front end components.The right front wheel is completely bent and the right front tire blew out. Front right headlight complete... Read more
Crash
1 injured
Incident date: Oct 28, 2021
Airbag light continuously flashes, I read that there were recalls with Nissan/Infiniti airbags and my model and year was included so I took it to the dealer to have it checked. Infiniti of Lynnwood can't find the problem, they said all the sensors were fine and diagnosed it as; "98820-3JA9B - Sensor-Side Airbag center. Airbag diagnosis sensor to start, this is the first step, will have to test fur... Read more
Incident date: Sep 12, 2023
There has been a recall for our vehicle, and the manufacturer has failed to remedy this serious safety recall for our 2016 Chevy Traverse in a timely manner. We no longer feel safe driving/riding in our traverse. I would like information on a refund and/or request the manufacturer to please purchase our traverse.
Incident date: Nov 26, 2023
The airbag maintenace light comes on every time I start it. Alot of my friends who own GMC say that it is a normal problem with a GMC vehicle and there should be a recall on it. But there is none.
VOLKSWAGEN
ATLAS
(2018) - AIR BAGS
Nov 28, 2023
Incident date: Aug 11, 2023
I have front passenger Service Alerts for the code SRS system and it happened many times. Tesla does service center can not fix the problem and keep telling me monitor the problem if it happens again. The code is RCM2_a636_ocsFaulted. Tesla service center tested the SRS system, updated software calibration and lastly today Tesla technician send me the software update and I updated it. The code sho... Read more
Incident date: Nov 28, 2023
NOTHING AIR BAGS DEPLOYED WAS LEAVING A PARKING LOT STARTED WENT TO DRIVE OFF !! BANG 2000 BOUNDS OF PRESSURE IN MY FACE! MY WHOLE BODY!! IT WAS A RENTAL !! LOOK INTO THIS VECHICAIL !HAIR BURNT! FRIED WIRE SMELL STILL ON MY BURNT JACKET!! LOOK INTO THIS WITH GREAT CONCERN AS IAM REACHING OUT WITH SHOCK AND AWE ABOUT THIS WHOLE SITUATION THAT ACCURED** THERE IS VIDEO OF ACCURANCE IN PARKING L... Read more
1 injured
Incident date: Nov 26, 2023
I had front collision that caused by having difficulty switching my foot from acceleration pedal (gas pedal) to brake pedal, my foot movement from gas pedal to brake pedal has been restricted by friction between my shoe and brake pedal that delayed my foot movement and caused the accident, Automatic emergency brake did not function too. Also air bags did not open at this front collision.
Crash
3 injured
Incident date: Nov 24, 2023
Passenger seat sensor light for air bag stays lit, flashing 1 steady and 5 bursts. Shows airbag off even with adult sitting in passenger seat
Incident date: Nov 21, 2023
The contact owns a 2021 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while her mother was driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle crashed into another vehicle that had slammed on its brakes. The contact stated that the proceeding vehicle then crashed into the rear of another vehicle. The contact stated that her mother was involved in a four-car pileup. The air bags did not deploy. A Police report was ... Read more
Crash
1 injured
FORD
MUSTANG MACH E
(2022) - AIR BAGS
Nov 28, 2023
Incident date: Jul 1, 2023
The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that the passenger’s side air bag warning light illuminated after starting the vehicle. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the passenger occupant detection system (PODS) had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The mechanic advised the co... Read more
Incident date: Sep 25, 2023
My airbag light on and I've check the fuses in it,Not it,,, My AC,. The drivers door lock , Oxagen senser Crank Shaft,
Incident date: Nov 25, 2023
The contact owns a 2015 Hyundai Elantra. The contact stated that while pulling out of a parking spot, the vehicle accelerated unintendedly. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that she depressed the brake pedal several times, but the vehicle failed to respond and crashed into a building. The driver's side air bag deployed; however, there was flame in the air bag upon deploym... Read more
Crash
Fire
1 injured
Incident date: Nov 1, 2023
1. Both rear springs have broken within 1 year of each other. There were no accidents or any kind or off road driving. These are Expensive to fix. 2. Driver side airbag light is on. No idea why. Afraid to drive this vehicle.
Incident date: Oct 31, 2023
My air bag light warning light is constantly blinking and I took it to the dealer ship. I informed the service guy this could be a malfunction due to a recall. He only asked me to pay for an diagnostic for $175.00. I think based on a history dated from 2004-2018 regarding Air bags recalls this is a recall. I contacted Mazda 1-800-222-5500 Option 11/28/2023 @ 10:00 am I reported this to Mazda Ve... Read more