Department of Transport finalized regulations to help millions of drivers who are unknowingly operating vehicles subject to safety recalls, reports Blacklock’s Reporter. These new rules mandate that automakers post keyword-searchable recall notices on their websites and ensure that these notices remain accessible for 15 years, which is sufficient time to cover the average lifespan of passenger vehicles in Canada.“Safety recalls have increased over the past 20 years,” the department wrote in a legal notice. “The number of safety recalls issued each year increased from 248 in 2002 to 710 in 2023. In 2023 alone, 111 separate companies issued safety recalls affecting over four million vehicles and vehicle equipment.”Motor Vehicle Safety Act regulations mandated that automakers, tire distributors, and infant car seat manufacturers send recall notices to new buyers. However, the transport department criticized these regulations, stating that they were ineffective in addressing the millions of drivers who own used cars and other vehicles that are still subject to safety recalls despite being off warranty. “While a company must send notifications to current owners and prescribed persons of a safety recall, many still go unresolved,” said a Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement.“The Department of Transport estimates in excess of 1 in 5 vehicles in use on Canada’s roads today has an unresolved safety recall,” said the Analysis Statement. “Based on the 33.3 million registered vehicles in 2019 this means approximately 6.6 million unsafe vehicles are circulating on Canadian roads potentially endangering not only occupants but other road users.”Gas or diesel vehicles, on average, have a lifespan of 11 to 12 years, as estimated by official sources.“Older vehicles are more likely to have unresolved recalls,” wrote the transport department.Analysts said while most manufacturers already post recall notices on their websites, they are “not always consistent, easy to find or offered in both official languages.” New regulations state recall notices must be plainly posted, including by keyword-searchable format using vehicle identification numbers, and that notices “remain on the companies’ websites for at least 15 years.”The Analysis Statement asserted that the initiative would save lives. “Having fewer vehicles with outstanding safety recalls on the road would mean a lower number of injuries, severe injuries and fatalities,” it said.Traffic collisions annually claimed the lives of approximately 1,900 people and injured 118,000 others. However, the annual Canadian Motor Vehicle Traffic Collisions Statistics report by the transport department does not provide specific data on the number of road accidents caused by missed recall notices.Prince Edward Island has the most road deaths at 14.1 per 100,000 drivers, followed by Saskatchewan (12), New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador (9), British Columbia, Alberta, and Manitoba (8), Québec (7), and Ontario (5).
