Although you may be feeling queasy about sending a hard-won and loyal customer out to the Auto Mile, non-dealership repairers are nonetheless well-positioned to gain goodwill by at least letting your patrons know that a recall is in play and assist in answering their preliminary questions.
“It demonstrates to your customers that you have their best interests in mind, and it paves the way to have the work done,” she points out. “You have the ability to look up the VIN when you have the vehicle in your bay. It shows that you’re on top of the new technology and that you know what’s going on.”
Wilson suggests that “you want to have a system to do it; find somebody on your staff who is computer-savvy who can follow the recall notices when they come out.”
Recall repairs tend to be exclusively within the dealership domain because of the federally mandated responsibilities of OEMs to effectively remedy the problem. And as Capitol Hill committees hold hearings on the amount of recall notices that have yet to be heeded by the motoring public, regulators, automakers, suppliers, insurers and other industry organizations are implementing programs aimed at motivating drivers to actually come in and get their repairs accomplished.
Throughout the U.S. in 2015 a record-setting 51.2 million vehicles, nearly 900 separate recalls, were issued notices, topping the 50.9 million vehicles recalled in 2014. During the first eight weeks of 2016 there were already 84 new recalls impacting 8.6 million vehicles.
As many as one-third of all American car owners have experienced the unpleasantness of receiving a recall notification about their vehicle, according to a recent national poll conducted by Liberty Mutual Insurance.
“We found that 62 percent of those surveyed believe it’s the manufacturer’s responsibility to notify them if their car has been recalled. In many cases, however, car owners are sometimes unable to be notified by the auto manufacturers as they’ve either changed addresses or the vehicle has changed ownership,” notes Chad Lovell, the carrier’s managing director of emerging partnerships and strategic programs.
“Despite increasing odds that car owners will receive a recall notification at some point during their ownership, 14 percent of Americans question whether their car manufacturer could even contact them in the event of a recall. The overwhelming majority of Americans – 91 percent – reported they would find it valuable if someone proactively notified them that their vehicle has been recalled,” says Lovell, referring to Liberty’s recent launch of its Auto Recall Notification Service that utilizes up-to-date recall data compiled by third-party vendor CarProof.
With access to VINs and policyholders’ most current contact information, “we have a direct line to the driver that auto manufacturers may not have to provide a proactive alert to any recalls associated with their cars,” he says. Clients can also log into Liberty’s eService system to see if their vehicle has an open recall.
Only 42 percent of those surveyed prior to the Auto Recall Notification Service’s rollout made an effort to check if their vehicle is subject to a recall, and this habit is more pronounced among the 18- to 24-year-old age group (51 percent) than with the 55-plus baby boomer generation (37 percent).
“This recall notification program is a value-added service and unrelated to a customer’s coverage or premium. It is up to the customer to follow up and bring their vehicle to be repaired,” explains Lovell, and it is also unrelated to patronizing shops belonging to Liberty’s direct repair program (DRP), known as the Guaranteed Repair Network. “Customers may get their vehicles repaired at the shop of their choice; the service is only designed to notify customers about safety-specific recalls.”
Remaining on the radar
Aimed at shop owners, J.D. Power’s new SafetyIQ system incorporates documentation from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to present daily online updates regarding vehicle recalls, technical service bulletins and driver-filed complaints in a searchable database covering make, model, year and component.
“With SafetyIQ, we’re bringing together critical information that has been buried within piles of data to help automotive professionals analyze trends and quickly access the information they need to improve vehicle safety,” says automotive segment Vice President Renee Stephens.
It allows you to spot trends, develop benchmarks versus your competition, and prioritize areas of focus, she adds. “The information is particularly valuable for data on vehicles over three-years-old, which typically receive the highest volume of complaints and may have fallen off the radar of manufacturers because they are no longer under warranty.”
“A key part of keeping customer cars well-maintained is making sure the recall repairs are up-to-date,” observes Vern Poyner, general manager at Carfax, which has collaborated with Dealerlogix to produce an integrated version of myCarfax “so dealerships can identify more vehicles with open recalls in their service lanes. Service advisors writing-up customer vehicles using the enhanced Dealerlogix system are automatically notified of open recalls on them, including off-brand vehicles.”
“This integration automatically looks up open recalls and adds them to the appointment or repair order with zero effort on the part of the service advisor,” says Dealerlogix President Mark Brandon. “This helps ensure customers of Dealerlogix dealerships are driving safe cars, while dealers are maximizing revenue and reducing warranty administration headaches.”
However, dealership service center staffers conducting recall-related replacements are being advised to heighten their commitment to customer satisfaction under these circumstances. “While it may be tempting for dealers to focus more on repair or maintenance work, recall customers represent both an opportunity and a risk to the brand and dealer,” cautions Chris Sutton, J.D. Power’s vice president of automotive retail. “There is a need for consistency in the service experience, regardless of the reason for the visit. A lack of consistency, particularly for recall work, can damage customers’ perceptions of the brand and negatively impact their likelihood to recommend and repurchase the brand.”
Customer satisfaction rates relating to recall experiences have declined for the first time in six years, according to a recent survey by the company. As recall numbers soar, customer satisfaction with recall service thusfar in 2016 has dropped to 781 on a 1,000-point scale, down from 789 in 2015.
In comparison, satisfaction among customers with non-recall service currently averages 809 points. Contrasted with customers having non-recall work performed, says Sutton, people arriving for recalls contend that they are less likely to have their vehicle returned to them cleaner and with the same settings as when they brought it in, and they are less likely to be contacted by the dealer to see how things went after the process is completed.
Ticket-enhancing procedures such as overall ten-point “safety inspections” and the like may not be going over so well with drivers coming in for recalls, as the J.D. Power study further finds that 70 percent of all dealer service customers are only willing to wait between one to two hours to have their vehicle repaired. Additionally, 17 percent of customers are only willing to wait for less than an hour – or not at all, “demonstrating the importance of providing loaner vehicles and offering shuttle service as well as amenities in the waiting area.” Customer satisfaction averages 835 when the wait time is less than an hour and 40 minutes, and dips to 756 when the wait is longer.
Assessing risk factors
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the Association of Global Automakers have been conducting research to understand why roughly 25 percent of the owners of recalled vehicles never seek their free repairs.
Results indicate that many motorists are doing their own risk assessments when they receive a notice and deciding if the recall is deemed important enough for a response. Numerous survey respondents showed a reduced likelihood to repair a recalled vehicle if they perceived the problem to be of “low” or “moderate” risk, saying it seemed to be “no big deal.” Owners of used vehicles are less likely to be motivated to respond to recall communications, even when they are aware of the situation.
Just under 65 percent of owners who received a notice in the past one to two years reported repairing their vehicle; 31 percent had not done the repair yet but intended to, while 5 percent had no plans to participate in the recall.
The perceived ramifications of a given recall’s safety risk significantly impacts participation rates, creating a scenario in which shop owners can impart your customer-centric influence to ensure that everyone remains safe behind the wheel. Survey participants were asked to evaluate three levels of severity in actual recalls and how they would respond. Results showed that 90 percent said they would be likely to get the severe risk recall (steering may malfunction while driving) fixed, compared to 61 percent who would be likely to respond to the moderate risk recall (sunroof may inadvertently close), and 44 percent would repair a low risk recall (certification label is missing tire information).
People who have a relationship with a dealer participate in recalls more often, according to the survey. Those who bought their vehicle new are more likely to report getting their recall fixed – 68 percent compared to 56 percent who bought their vehicle used. Those who routinely service their vehicles at a dealership respond to safety recalls more often (74 percent) than those (55 percent) who take their vehicle in for service elsewhere.
Springing ahead
“Recalls are a serious safety issue that should be promptly addressed. An informed consumer is one of our strongest allies in ensuring recalled vehicles are repaired,” says U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, who in January presided over the unveiling of a NHTSA “Safe Cars Save Lives” public awareness campaign. “Do not wait to act if your car is under recall and the parts are available.”
As with checking smoke detector batteries, motorists are urged to look up their VINs on twice a year on NHTSA’s website when they “spring ahead” and “fall back” in altering their clocks for daylight saving time.
“Safe Cars Save Lives is a critical effort for building public awareness of recalls, and is the first national campaign aimed at empowering vehicle owners,” says NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind. “Millions of vehicles are recalled every year. Old, new, used or leased – one of those recalled vehicles could be yours.”
In addition to videos and other publicity materials, the agency – perhaps reacting in-part to increased Congressional scrutiny – has been pushing government transportation officials, automotive industry representatives, insurance companies, safety advocates and researchers to examine the reasons for low recall repair rates and deliver options for improving the process.
And mechanical shops and collision repairers alike are positioned to play a significant role in getting the word out. Says Rosekind: “Boosting repair rates requires effective communication at every level and every step of the way.”
