Lonny Haschel, Senior Program Manager for the Check to Protect Program at the National Safety Council (NSC)
Credit: NSCVehicle Safety Recalls Week is this week. (March 2-8) Many drivers in New Jersey assume they would know if their car had a serious safety issue. That’s not always true.
According to a new survey commissioned by car manufacturer Stellantis, found that close to fifty percent of drivers in the country don’t have a clue as to how to check to see if their vehicle has an open safety recall.
40% say they believe a recall is fine as long as it doesn’t affect how their vehicle drives. This thinking is not only false, but it can be deadly. Stats show that unrepaired safety recalls, such as faulty airbags or brakes, can cause serious injury or death.
I invited vehicle safety expert Lonny Haschel to join me on the show. Lonny is the Senior Program Manager for the Check to Protect Program at the National Safety Council (NSC) and discusses the many facts and misconceptions of vehicle safety recalls.
We talked about why recalls matter and how easy it is to check if your car has an open recall. We also discussed the dangers and misconceptions that put our family at risk, among other things.
Lonny said, “Sometimes people don’t think about recalls, and they get that letter in the mail, and they just throw it away.” He encourages everyone to “check their vehicle and make sure that they’re not going to have an unforeseen issue and cause an injury to somebody.”
The most common misconception is “my vehicle’s running fine, I don’t hear or feel anything.” You would hear or feel certain critical safety issues, such as brakes, steering, airbags, seatbelts, or equipment involving baby seats.
Safety Recalls on “Child Anchorage Systems”
Fact: “There are nearly one million vehicles in the United States that have open safety recalls on the child anchorage systems in the back seats of cars.” The lower anchors and top tethers are “not something you may notice, and people ignore that, or they just say, ‘It’s fine, I’m not going to mess with it.’”
The biggest question is “How much is this going to cost me?” The answer is “nothing.” It doesn’t matter how old your car is; all recall repairs are performed by a dealer for free.
Check out our entire conversation here:
Another misconception is that it’s a difficult process. They’ve made it really easy. You go to checktoprotect.org and enter the year, model, and manufacturer or your license plate number. They’ve made it even easier by enabling you to simply take a picture of your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) and upload it to their site. The VIN is located on the inside of the driver’s side door or windshield, below your inspection sticker. The VIN is also listed on your registration and insurance cards.
It’s simple, it’s free, and it could save lives. Do it now…
According to their website, "Right now, 57 million vehicles on the road have open recalls."
Lonny Haschel retired from the Texas Department of Public Safety in 2021 after serving in law enforcement for over 33 years. He was retired for less than two months before accepting a position with the National Safety Council. Lonny is a Senior Program Manager in the Mobility Safety Division and oversees the Check To Protect Program. In this role, Lonny collaborates with automakers and local, state, and federal government organizations.
