Open Recalls Fall 8% in 2018

There are presently 52 million vehicles with open recalls on the nation’s roadways, a significant decline from the 63 million in 2017 and the 57 million in 2018, according to the latest annual findings from Carfax.

While the 8% dip shows the numbers are going in the right direction, approximately one in every five registered vehicles is still operating with an unfixed repair needed.

For the second consecutive year, the report finds that light trucks and minivans are the vehicles most likely to have unrepaired recalls.

The report also evaluates where geographically open recalls are the biggest problem. The highest percentage of vehicles with open recalls can be found in the South. The top five states include Mississippi (24.7%), Texas (24.6%), Louisiana (23.7%), Alabama (22.2%), New Mexico (22.1%), and Arkansas (21.6%).

As for the most vehicles with open recalls, California leads the way with 6.3 million followed by Texas (5.5 million), Florida (3.2 million), Pennsylvania (2.2 million), and New York (2.1 million).

Carfax attributes the overall decline in open recalls to greater consumer awareness of the issue and use of free vehicle monitoring services.