Automotive

European sector spotlight

The Sedgwick brand protection Recall Index is the essential reference for automotive manufacturers seeking impartial and reliable perspective on past, present, and future product recall data and safety trends.

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European automotive product recalls rose in 2021, reaching 571 for the year. This marked an 18% increase compared to 2020.

The latest edition of our highly coveted product recall index report offers a comprehensive year-in-review of 2021 automotive product recall data and trends, and insightful predictions for the remainder of 2022. It is the only report of its kind that aggregates and tracks essential data to help automotive business leaders mitigate litigation and reputational damage caused by product recalls and other in-market product incidents.

While we strongly recommend you download and read the whole index, the following excerpt provides a glimpse into the key insights and analysis from the automotive sector.

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+17.7%

more European automotive recalls in 2021

571

European automotive recall events in 2021

INJURIES

leading cause of recalls for the last 10 years

The European automotive landscape

Throughout 2021, sustainability initiatives were top of mind for the automotive industry as the European Commission proposed changes to the Intelligent Transport Systems Directive and moved forward with Euro 7/VII emissions standards that apply to all petrol and diesel vehicles. Regulators have also signalled they will be paying close attention to whether companies adhere to their green obligations, with German authorities fining one company more than 20 million euros for failing to comply with environmental regulations.

Automotive safety will also be a key focus for regulators in 2022, with the first phase of the EU’s General Safety Regulation going into effect in July 2022. This regulation requires that all cars and light vehicles have three advanced driving assistants geared towards increasing passenger safety. Although no longer part of the EU, it is expected that similar requirements will apply in the UK since many driving laws have been transferred for ease of manufacturing.

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Recall index report

Get unrivaled analysis and perspective on the latest automotive product safety trends and regulation.

Download the report

By the numbers: 2021 European automotive recalls

Automotive product recalls rose across Europe in 2021, reaching 571 for the year. This marked a 17.7% increase compared to 2020. Once again, Germany led with the most recall notifications at 379, or 66.4% in 2021, followed by France and Portugal. The number of recall notifications in the UK dropped significantly, going from 62 in 2020 to only five in 2021. In terms of country of origin, Germany led with 214 product recall events in 2021, followed by France.

Consistent with recent years, the most common risk associated with automotive product recalls across each quarter was injuries. Injuries were cited in 77.8% of total recalls, with 444 reported for the whole of 2021. Following patterns from 2019 and 2020, fire was the second most common risk type – listed in 79 product recalls, and fire and injuries (combined) were cited in 27.

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Recall index report

Get unrivaled analysis and perspective on the latest automotive product safety trends and regulation.

Download the report

2022 strategic considerations

While product recall numbers are important, they are only part of the story. Here's what you should take away from automotive product safety developments in 2022:

  • As part of the European Green Deal, European vehicle emissions standards Euro 7/VII that apply to all petrol and diesel vehicles are scheduled to go into effect during 2022. While its implementation has been delayed, have you begun preparing for these stricter standards and how they may impact your manufacturing process? Will your product recall and crisis plans be updated to handle a recall related to vehicles not meeting emissions standards?
  • The EU’s General Safety Regulation goes into effect in July 2022, which will require many vehicles to have three driving assistants: intelligent speed assistant (ISA), lane change warning, and a tyre pressure monitoring system. Are you taking the necessary steps to ensure you are prepared for this new requirement? Have you considered how ongoing supply chain challenges may impact your company’s ability to meet the implementation date?
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Recall index report

Get unrivaled analysis and perspective on the latest automotive product safety trends and regulation.

Download the report

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Whether you’re planning for — or currently facing — a product recall, market withdrawal or any other in-market product incident, our experts are on hand to support you.

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