What are your rights when your vehicle has a recall?

Q. What are the rights of a consumer when their vehicle has a recall? Our 2014 Toyota Sienna has a recall for the rear sliding door; aside from the repair, the dealer will only provide a ride downtown and back to the dealership. No loaner is provided for the day while they complete the recall work. Unfortunately, the closest Toyota dealer is approximately three hours away from where we live. –Steich in Red Lake, Ont. A. In 2018, Canada’s auto recall legislation was updated to align it more closely with the United States. The government now has the power to order an automaker to perform a no-charge recall repair. Under the old legislation, the authority of Transport Canada was limited to compelling an automaker to issue a letter to vehicle owners notifying them of a safety defect. There is nothing in the updated legislation about additional compensation to vehicle owners for loss of time or inconvenience. The Sienna sliding door recall you refer to takes about three hours to complete. Safety recalls and vehicle warranty coverage generally includes only the cost to perform the repair. An automaker will sometimes provide a no-charge rental or loaner if the recalled vehicle must be kept for more than a day, or parts are unavailable and there is a high perceived risk of the vehicle causing injury. Compensation for time lost, inconvenience or alternate transportation are very much the exception; they’re more likely with some luxury brands whose premium service sometimes provides complimentary valet service or a loaner. Presumably, when you bought the Sienna you had to make a three-hour journey to shop for it. It was also foreseeable at the time that service and warranty repairs would have to be performed at the retailer. In the absence of some aggravating factor, like multiple visits to fix the same problem, or a vehicle that is not drivable for several days, the inconvenience seems reasonable. It falls into the obligations that are part of vehicle ownership for people living outside of large urban markets. You may be surprised to learn that safety advocates have not leaned hard on the automakers to recognize the personal expense and inconvenience when vehicles are recalled. That’s because adding, say $50, for transportation to and from the dealership and time lost would nearly double the cost of many recalls. It’s hard enough to convince the automakers to recognize some defects – building the additional cost into recall campaigns is perceived as a potential disincentive in some circles.

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Francisco Cuevas says:

June 18, 2020 at 8:20 am

If a vehicle has multiple recalls and the you notified them in advance.That is given them time to order the defective parts.Are they obligated to perform the repairs on the same visit.Thank you

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Sherbear says:

July 1, 2020 at 7:13 pm

What if your vehicle’s recall damaged attached property? Ex: trailer hitch wiring recall caused wiring harness and mating trailer harness to overheat/melt. This damage was solely caused by the vehicle hence the recall. Does the auto manufacturer have to replace both trailer wiring attachments as well as perform recall itself? I would hope so, but what if they say no? What rights do I have in Canada if property (while minor) was damaged directly due to the associated recall? Anyone know?

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Marlene Trenholm says:

September 21, 2020 at 3:14 pm

What if I just had my car repaired and a month later it is recalled for that exact repair. Am I entitled to a refund?

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Marlene Trenholm says:

September 21, 2020 at 8:35 pm

What if I had my car repaired and a month later it is recalled for that exact repair. Am I entitled to a refund for the cost of the repair from the car manufacturer?

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Josephine El khoury says:

March 7, 2021 at 8:09 am

I called Toyota to ask about sliding door problem and they refuse to admit their is a recall about it.

I just had my car repaired , Am I entitled to a refund?

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1. MoneySense Editors says:
  
  March 8, 2021 at 10:22 am
  
  Thanks for the question. We invite you to email your question to [email protected], where it will be considered for a future response by one of our expert columnists. For personal advice, we suggest consulting with your financial institution or a qualified advisor.
  
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Marc Fournier says:

July 7, 2021 at 8:35 pm

What if I don’t want to fix the recall ???

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Chris mailman says:

December 20, 2021 at 2:41 pm

If a car has re call on a part in a tranny .but a bearing holder has to be removied and is seized who pays for the labour and that part.

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Lubajo Lubajo says:

January 18, 2022 at 4:01 am

There was a recall for toyota camry 2012 to 2013, defective computer that will result in transimission and torgue converter break down. I bought the car from a dealership, last week, i discovered that it has been recalled and should have been fixed for safety reasons.
I did not recieve any letter of recall, from the dealership or toyota canada. When i called the dealership, they said the recall is expired and i should call toyota canada to approve the repair.
Toyota canada, refused to replace the defective computer saying the recall is expired. to my surprise, they informed me that they do not have any record of my car. What they can offer is register my car for future recall.
Is it my respossible to replace the defective computer, since it is well established that it is toyota’s defective part?
If you did not recieve recall letter from toyota and discovered your car was called, is it not the companies respossiblity to replace the defective computer for the safety of the person driving and the public?
Are there safety laws that govern recalls? Are recalls supposed to expire since it poses danger to the owners and the public? Since car manufacturers are powerful, what can our governorment do to protect the public from danger of recalled cars that toyota deemed expired?

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Blair coutts says:

May 2, 2022 at 1:44 am

My 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer has a recall for the front control arms. I brought to dealer for recall, they took it apart and said the frame is too rusted to fix and can’t/won’t continue with the work. I drove the car there and now it’s a write off. What can I do?

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1. MoneySense Editors says:
  
  May 4, 2022 at 2:55 pm
  
  Due to the large volume of comments we receive, we regret that we are unable to respond directly to each one. We invite you to email your question to [email protected], where it will be considered for a future response by one of our expert columnists. For personal advice, we suggest consulting with your financial institution or a qualified advisor.
  
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Sandro Chiassolini says:

July 8, 2022 at 9:54 am

I’ve been waiting since April for ford recall on rear suspension for my 2016 explorer . I’ve called back many times to ask what the hold up is just to get the runaround. Yesterday while driving after I picked up my 3 year old daughter and 1 year old son the part in question let go . The truck immediately swund into oncoming traffic wheels locked .. everyone is ok my daughter was in shock I was in a panic. Couldn’t get to the dealership cause they closed already had to tow it . Next day a miracle they had all my parts in stock .. this is absolutely disgusting they have put me and my family at risk this was a safety recall which I got multiple letter for . Can I sue this dealership?

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Oluwafisayo AYITA says:

June 29, 2023 at 11:04 pm

It is my view that any car recalled for safety purpose should not stay another hour with the buyer.. it should be withdrawn immediately.

It’s also my position that life threatening safety recall concerns eg wheels, airbags , engine etc should come with a replacement which should be delivered with letter of apology.

If an automobile buyer receives a notice that there’s a defect in his/her vehicle which impact may lead to serious injuries or death to the occupants and ,the automaker says, the person should continue using the car and that they will ask for the vehicle when part involve is available…. Have they consider that defect may kill the buyer even the next day after such notification while driving it… Any serious life threatening safety recall should should make the automaker to replace the whole vehicle… Nothing is more sensitive than this to me.

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Oluwafisayo says:

April 20, 2024 at 10:09 pm

Our Chivrolet Traverse LT 2017 was recalled. We received the letter in June last year stating that the defects if not fixed can cause death to the driver and other occupants if the car collide with anything. The airbags was poorly installed and the iron that covers the plate which may stretch out if the car hit anything

I have repeatedly called at Vickar, the authorise auto maintainance… They checked and responded the item isn’t available. I called at General Motors, they told me it’s not ready…

Kindly advise.

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Fiona Kettlewell says:

July 30, 2024 at 9:55 pm

I have a Ford Eco sport that has a recall, the car is at the dealer, but it is going to be early 2025 before I get it back, I still have to continue making my car payments, was inconvenienced a week before they finally agreed to rent me a car, I feel like the only people not inconvenienced for this is Ford, any suggestions

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Cathy Pavli says:

August 23, 2024 at 3:15 pm

Took my 2019 F150 lariat in for a Sync software recall issued by Ford.. the trucks screen is now dead and the truck doesn’t drive, this was 5 days ago, dealership can’t fix it Ford can’t fix it now I’m out a vehicle .. ford doesn’t seem to care and has taken a oh well attitude.. what recourse do I have?

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