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 573 complaints for JAYCO
Incident date: Oct 22, 2000
ON OR ABOUT NOVEMBER 9, 1999 THE HYDRAULIC SURGE BRAKE SYSTEM FAILED DURING AN EMERGENCY STOP. ON OCTOBER 22, 2000 THE SAME WHEEL CYLINDER FAILED WHILE CRUISING AT 60MPH. DEALER ORIG. SAID OTHERS IN SERIES HAD SAME PROBLEM IN 1999.
Incident date: Sep 12, 2000
WE HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH JAYCO MFG FROM THE BEGINNING. MY WIFE AND I HAVE EXPERIENCED FOUR CATASTROPHIC BLOWOUTS IN THE LAST TEN MONTHS ON OUR NEW CAMPER. THE BRAKES ON THESE 12" TIRES SEEM TO BE OVERHEATING THE WHEELS CAUSING EXTREME TEMPERATURES ON THE TIRES UNTIL IT FINALLY EXPLODES. THE THIRD TIRE WE BLEW ONLY HAD THE INSIDE BEAD REMAINING ON THE RIM. I LOCKED OUT THE BRAKES AND HAVEN'... Read more
Incident date: Jun 1, 1997
THE REAR AXLE WAS MOUNTED INCORRECTLY CAUSING THE TIRES TO COME APART, ONE TIRE BLOW OUT AND THE OTHER FOUR HAD TREAD SEPARATION. ET
Incident date: Apr 1, 1999
PE00020, ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT ON 1999 JAYCO WITH DUEL REAR TIRES ON A FORD CHASSIS, TIRE SIZE LT22575R16, DOT VD. REAR PASSENGER INNER TIRE HAD A BLOWOUT WITH ONLY 1,000 MILES WHICH MAY HAVE CAUSED A CRASH. *AK *SLC
Incident date: Dec 3, 1999
POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS LP GAS SUPPLY ON REFRIGERATOR. HAD SINCE DEC. '99, JUST RECALLED AUG. 2000
Incident date: Jul 21, 2000
THE GOODYEAR WRANGLER HT TIRE SIZE LT P215/85R16 EXPERIENCED TWO TIRE TREAD SEPARATIONS WHILE DRIVING CAUSING DAMAGE TO THE RECREATIONAL TRAILER. *MJS
Incident date: Aug 6, 2000
SUDDEN TREAD PEEL OFF ALL BUT 6 INCHES, SLAPPING TREAD DAMAGED MOTORHOME PARTS( DOT NUMBER: TIRE SIZE: LT22575R16 )
Incident date: Apr 7, 2000
THE TREAD AND STEEL BELT OF THE GOODYEAR TIRE SEPARATED(MARATHON RADIAL TRAILER ST 225/75R15D)
Incident date: Aug 6, 2000
SUDDEN TREAD PEEL OFF ALL BUT 6 INCHES, SLAPPING TREAD DAMAGED MOTORHOME PARTS( DOT NUMBER: TIRE SIZE: LT22575R16 )
Incident date: Aug 7, 2000
I HAVE SIX OTHER TIRES WITH THE SAME INFO ON THEM JAYCO MOTOR HOME E SYOER DUTY( DOT NUMBER: VD1L1XD527 TIRE SIZE: LT22575R16 )
Incident date: Aug 7, 2000
WHILE DRIVING EAST ON I-26 NEAR EXIT TO HWY 301 AT APPROXIMATELY 11:00 AM, RIGHT INSIDE REAR TIRE TREAD SEPARATED CAUSING TIRE TO BLOW OUT AND DAMAGING STORAGE BINS AND WHEEL WELL.( DOT NUMBER: VD1L1XD527 TIRE SIZE: LT22575R16 )
Incident date: Jul 24, 2000
ON VACATION, SOUTH CAROLINA, 70 MPH FLAT ROAD, NO HAZARDS, 91 DEGREES OUTSIDE TEMP. AIR PRESSURE 80PSI IN TIRE. I HAD BEEN WATCHING UNUSUAL WEAR ON DRIVER SIDE READ INSIDE DUAL FOR 3000 MILES. TIRE WAS WEARING TREAD LINES UNEVEN. OF THE 5 TREAD LINES ON THE TIRE, TREAD LINES 2 AND 4 WERE CUPPED AND WORN MORE THAN THE REST OF ANY OF THE TIRES. I HAD THE TIRES CHECKED BY NUMEROUS TIRE FACILITIE... Read more
Incident date: Aug 19, 2000
WHILE FILLING HOLDING TANK, IT HOLDS 420 POUNDS AND IT SLIDES IN ON A SMALL LEDGE. THE SCREWS THAT ARE DESIGNED TO HOLD TANK IN. TQANK HAD 6 SCREWS MISSING ON THE BACK, AND 5 ON THE FRONT, AND THE REST OF THE SCREWS WERE HALF SCREWED IN. LEDGE IS CALLED A Z-BAR, WITH TWO STRAPS TO HOLD TANK IN PLACE. CONSUMER SAID WHOLE TANK FELL OUT, AND BROKE THE ON AND OFF VALVE, AND DRAINED THE TANK. IF THIS... Read more
JAYCO EAGLE CLASSIC: ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS, BOTH TRAVELLING AT 60MPH ON INTERSTATE 10 IN ARIZONA, IN JULY, THE TREAD CAME OFF TWO FIRESTONE TIRES CAUSING $400 DAMAGE TO MY MOTORHOME. I FEEL THE TIRES CANNOT STAND UP TO THE EXTREME HEAT (100+). BOTH TIRES HAD GOOD TREAD WHICH SIMPLE CAME OFF THE TIRE. *AK( DOT NUMBER: TIRE SIZE: 225.75.16R )
CONSUMER NOTICED A PROBLEM WHEN PULLING THE JAYCO KIWI TRAILER, TRAILER SWAYING ACROSS THE ROAD. CONTACTED DEALER, DEALER REPLACED THE TIRES, PROBLEM STILL OCCURRED WHEN DRIVING AT 55 MPH. TRAVEL TRAILER WAS SWAYING ACROSS THE ROAD, CAUSING THE TRAILER TO FLIP OVER WHICH CAUSED AN ACCIDENT, TOTALING VEHICLE AND TRAILER. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
Crash
Incident date: Apr 4, 2000
NHTSA ID 00V169000 CALLS FOR ADDING 180 LBS TO THE FRONT A-FRAME TO RESOLVE TRAILER WEIGHT IMBALANCE WHEN TANKS BEHIND REAR AXLE ARE LEFT FULL. I EXPERIENCED THE EXCESSIVE SWAY - RESULTING FROM 30-40 MPH CROSSWINDS - REFERENCED IN THE RECALL, IMMEDIATLEY FOLLOWING DELIVERY ON THE TRAILER (FULLY EMPTY TANKS). ADDING AN ANTI-SWAY DEVICE TO MY EXISTING WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION HITCH ELIMINATED THE EXCE... Read more
JAYCO
CAMPER VAN
(1996) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Jul 6, 2000
THE ROOF OF THE CAMPER IS COLLAPSING DUE TO LACK OF SUPPORT. YH
BATTERY COMPARTMENT WIRING CONNECTOR BECAME DETACHED AND BLEW THE FUSE TO THE BATTERY AND CONVERTER, RESULTING IN LOSS OF ALL POWER. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
Incident date: Nov 1, 1999
WITH GROSS WEIGHT OF 14,050 IS LBS MOTORHOME CANNOT HAUL CANNED GOODS/FOOD/CLOTHING, AND CAMPING GEAR SINCE THESE ITEMS WOULD MAKE VEHICLE OVERWEIGHT. *AK
THE TRAILER HITCH WAS NOT PROPERLY WELDED, AND WHILE IN SWITCHING LANES, TRAILER WAS RELEASED AND CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO FISHTAIL ACROSS THE HIGHWAY. THE DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
Incident date: Sep 22, 1999
WHILE IN VEHICLE WAS MOTION PROPANE TANK BECME DEATACHED, AND WAS STILL HANGING ON TRAILER, AND DRAGGING ON ROAD. THIS CAUSED A SERIOUS FIRE HAZARD. CONSUMER CLAIMED THAT IT WAS NEVER PROPERLY ATTACHED AT THE FATORY. *AK
Incident date: Nov 7, 1998
WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES VEHICLE WOULD SHAKE EXCESSIVELY DUE TO THE ROTORS SPLITTING IN HALF. DEALER HAS SEEN\ VEHICLE. ROTORS HAVE BEEN REPLACED, AND THE PROBLEM STILL EXISTS. *AK
STOVE GAS BURNER TURNED ON, LEAKING GAS INTO THE TRAILER. KNOB CAN EASILY BE ACCIDENTALLY TURNED ON.
Incident date: Sep 1, 1997
TIRE BLISTERED (GOODYEAR MARATHON RADIAL TRAILER ST225-75R15) 6 MONTHS AFTER PURCHASE. *YC
Incident date: Aug 1, 1999
THE REAR PART OF THE TRAILER CAUGHT FIRE WITHOUT ANY WARNING. CANNOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *AK *YC
Fire
Incident date: Jun 1, 1999
VEHICLE EXPERIENCED TIRE FAILURE ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. HOWEVER ON ONE OCCASION TIRES EXPERIENCED BLOW OUT WHICH COULD HAVE CAUSED A SERIOUS ACCIDENT (GOODYEAR MARATHON TIRES ST225/75 R15). *YC
Incident date: Apr 2, 1999
A DEFECT INSIDE OF THE SUSPENSION SHOCK ABSORBERS CAUSED TIRES TO BLOW OUT. MOTORHOME WAS TOTALED, AND REAR TIRES BLEW OUT. *AK
Incident date: May 14, 1999
SEAT BELT BUCKLE MACHANISM IS JAMMED. FORD SENT A LETTER TO CONSUMER INDICATING THT FOR PART F8UZ1561203AAA THERE IS NOT A REPLACEMENT PART AVAILABLE IN THE USA UNTIL LATE SUMMER IF MANUFACTURER OF SEAT BELTS WOULD BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE MANUFACTURING . *AK
ELECTRIC BRAKES DESIGNED FOR TRAILER ARE INADEQUATE RESULTING IN BRAKE FADING. *YC
METAL RETAINER CLIP THAT HOLDS THE WIRING IS SHARP AND PENETRATES THROUGH THE WIRING, CAUSING AN ELECTRICAL SHORT/ VEHICLE TO BURN. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
Incident date: Dec 1, 1997
RECALL REPAIR NOT PERFORMED ON THE DEFECTIVE FUSE PANEL DUE TO LACK OF PARTS AND CONVENIENT DEALERSHIP LOCATION.
SLIDE OUT DOES NOT CLOSE EVENLY.
BOTH REAR BRAKES SEVERELY OVERHEAT DURING NORMAL TRAVEL.
Incident date: Jul 28, 1998
JAYCO HERTIAGE CASCADE 1998 KING SIZE BED WHICH CAN WITHSTAND 1500 POUNDS AND CHILDREN WERE ON THE BED (LESS THAN I000 POUNDS) THE SUPPORT BAR BENT, CAUSING THE BOTTOM END OF THE BED TO FALL, RESULTING IN INJURIES TO THE CHILDREN. MANUFACTURER REPLACED THE SUPPORT BAR, BUT CONSUMER STATED THAT 2 MORE SUPPORT BAR SHOULD BE INSTALLED IN ORDER PREVENT ANOTHER SIMILAR INCIDENT. *AK
1 injured
THE HANGERS THAT HOLD THE TWO AXLES ON THE TRAILER CAME UNWELDED.
Incident date: Jun 1, 1997
BRAKES OVERHEAT RESULTING IN FIRE AND DAMAGING BEARINGS DUE TO DESIGN FLAW, RECALL ON THESE TYPE OF BRAKES HOWEVER NEVER NOTIFIED.
Fire
Incident date: Jan 1, 1998
INTERIOR LIGHTS FAILED.
Incident date: Jun 1, 1997
SINK DOES NOT DRAIN PROPERLY, LOOSE MOLDING AROUND REFRIGERATOR.
Incident date: Sep 19, 1998
THE PLASTIC PIECE ON THE TRAILER'S BOTTOM COVERING THE INSULATION,GAVE WAY DUE TO THE BOLTS COMING OUT. THIS CAUSED THE INSULATION TO FALL OFF TRAILER'S BOTTOM. *AK
HANGERS THAT HOLD THE TWO AXLES ON THE TRAILER CAME UNWELDED CAUSING TIRES TO RUB/CHAFE.
SPRINGS BROKE DUE TO INAPPROPRIATE SIZE FOR TRAILER, CAUSING WHEELS TO RUB.
PROPANE BOTTLE MOUNTING DESIGN RESULTS IN VIBRATION, BOTTLE CAME OFF OF VEHICLE DUE TO DESIGN FLAW.
Incident date: Jul 1, 1998
THE C CHANNEL STEEL FRAME JUST ABOVE THE ATTACHMENT OF THE 5TH WHEEL EXTENSION, WAS JOINED TOGETHER BY A BOLTED PLATE (DESIGN). THE PLATE HAD FRACTURED THROUGH ONE OF THE BOLT HOLES AND WAS SEPARATING FROM THE FRAME.
Incident date: May 1, 1998
AXLE LOST BUILT IN CAMBER CAUSING EXTREME WEAR ON TIRES. AXLE DESIGNED TO HANDLE LIMITED WEIGHT VERY CLOSE TO CAPACITY WEIGHT.
Incident date: Aug 11, 1998
WHILE DRVING TRAILER & HAD APPLIED THE BRAKES, THERE WERE NO BRAKES. TRAILER DID NOT STOP RIGHT AWAY. HAD TRAILER CHECKED & WAS TOLD THE BRAKES HAD SEPARATED. *AK
Incident date: Sep 6, 1998
STAPLES AND BOLGES ARE SEEN WITH THE NAKED ON THE OUTER PANEL OF TRAILER. *AK
THE MALE ADAPTOR ON THE TRAILER IS TOO SHORT, PREVENTING THE TRAILER FROM TURNING EFFICIENTLY.
CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTOR IS PICKING UP AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF CARBON MONOXIDE IN MOTOR HOME. THE DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED. *AK
Incident date: May 22, 1998
BRAKE MASTER CYLINDR SPRING FAILED.
Incident date: Jan 1, 1998
THE 5TH WHEEL TRAILER EXTERIOR FIBERGLASS SIDINGS ARE COMING APART WHERE THE SIDING MAY FALL OFF WHICH MAY CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. DEALER CANNOT DETERMINE PROBLEM. *AK