Automobile Recalls What Must be Done?
Dennis AuBuchon
February 27, 2010
There are several manufacturers of automobiles around the world and the fact that many individuals drive somewhere everyday makes it extremely important that they be safe. Recent events in this industry have identified issues where recalls and safety concerns bring into question not only the quality of the work but the safety level of these vehicles. Much discussion is focusing on these incidents. These discussions while important should not focus on only one specific automaker but general industry practices and policies.
Safety of manufactured products we use everyday should always be foremost in our minds and the minds of those we elect to Congress. Recalls by automobile manufacturers is not something new but how the issue is being approached today raises some questions. Current congressional hearings on automobile recalls by one specific manufacturer are valid to ask questions on what happened and what is being done to resolve issues regarding the problems. This kind of review should occur for every manufacturer who has recall issues that affect the safety of the vehicles people drive every day.
While I believe Congress has a role in recall issues their actions must take to task any supplier when recalls involve safety or significant amounts of recalls. The current issue involves automobiles and as such The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration has a role in any investigation. As stated earlier product recalls are not something new what must happen is that the public has a right to know what happened and what is being done to address the situation. Action by Congress in this respect is a good thing but when an agency already exist who is responsible to investigate recall issues Congress´ role should be reduced.
Recalls are not something that any company likes to have happen but companies must have in place methods and procedures to address concerns and issues received from their customers. Keeping in touch with customers and acting on issues they identify sets companies apart from their competitors. The current appearance based on some of the coverage and statements made by the present company involved indicate this did not occur or at least did not occur in a timely manner.
Customers who purchase products that have recalls against them must be informed in a timely manner if their item is impacted. This is especially relevant if there are safety issues involved as with the current issue with automobiles and what they should do with the product. Another point to make is that it is important that actions are taken by companies with recalls once problems are identified.
This article has been more about automobile recalls but there must be investigations by Congress or the federal agency involved with recalls when they are identified. It is also important to note that not all recalls require or should require action by Congress. It is also important to note that all manufacturers of products of any type that have recalls should be treated the same. It is inappropriate to have hearings on one and not another if recalls are involved with more than one manufacturer of the same type of product.
Keeping consumers informed of recall actions and/or investigations is also important. Currently there is an easy way for consumers to be informed of recalls associated with automobiles and any investigations that are ongoing. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) has information about recalls posted on their web site with detailed information. The web address for this information is below:
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/defects/defectmonthlyreports.cfm
As an agency of the federal government the NHTSA has specific duties and responsibilities associated with highway traffic and safety issues. It is not unlike other agencies in the federal government who have assigned responsibilities and missions. Congress has the right to hold hearings on critical issues affecting the American public but they should let the agencies responsible for issues handle many situations. The distinct responsibilities of the NHTSA will not be covered in this article as they have other responsibilities than investigation of recalls of automobiles. It is also the duty of Congress when an agency appears to not have taken action concerning specific issues that they hold them accountable. Congressional hearings are common but they should be based upon the actual need to hold them and not be conducted for political purposes. This is not to say that the current hearings are being held for political reasons but sometimes the appearance can give another impression.
Recalls overall is not something new and that being said the key point to be made is what happened and what is being done to correct the problem and prevent recurrence. System analysis must also be conducted to identify where the system failed and how to correct it. Another important note to be made is that no business is perfect and problems will occur. Two things must happen when issues are identified. The first is determining the cause and the corrective measures to be taken. The second involves the customer that is impacted. Customers do not like to hear about problems but keeping customers informed on issues and what you are doing is important. The worst thing a company can do is keeping the customer in the dark on issues and ignoring complaints from customers. Customers like to be informed about the products they buy and they like to know if they have issues that they are addressed with a response. This can occur either directly or through information posted on a web site.
Safety of manufactured products we use everyday should always be foremost in our minds and the minds of those we elect to Congress. Recalls by automobile manufacturers is not something new but how the issue is being approached today raises some questions. Current congressional hearings on automobile recalls by one specific manufacturer are valid to ask questions on what happened and what is being done to resolve issues regarding the problems. This kind of review should occur for every manufacturer who has recall issues that affect the safety of the vehicles people drive every day.
While I believe Congress has a role in recall issues their actions must take to task any supplier when recalls involve safety or significant amounts of recalls. The current issue involves automobiles and as such The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration has a role in any investigation. As stated earlier product recalls are not something new what must happen is that the public has a right to know what happened and what is being done to address the situation. Action by Congress in this respect is a good thing but when an agency already exist who is responsible to investigate recall issues Congress´ role should be reduced.
Recalls are not something that any company likes to have happen but companies must have in place methods and procedures to address concerns and issues received from their customers. Keeping in touch with customers and acting on issues they identify sets companies apart from their competitors. The current appearance based on some of the coverage and statements made by the present company involved indicate this did not occur or at least did not occur in a timely manner.
Customers who purchase products that have recalls against them must be informed in a timely manner if their item is impacted. This is especially relevant if there are safety issues involved as with the current issue with automobiles and what they should do with the product. Another point to make is that it is important that actions are taken by companies with recalls once problems are identified.
This article has been more about automobile recalls but there must be investigations by Congress or the federal agency involved with recalls when they are identified. It is also important to note that not all recalls require or should require action by Congress. It is also important to note that all manufacturers of products of any type that have recalls should be treated the same. It is inappropriate to have hearings on one and not another if recalls are involved with more than one manufacturer of the same type of product.
Keeping consumers informed of recall actions and/or investigations is also important. Currently there is an easy way for consumers to be informed of recalls associated with automobiles and any investigations that are ongoing. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) has information about recalls posted on their web site with detailed information. The web address for this information is below:
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/defects/defectmonthlyreports.cfm
As an agency of the federal government the NHTSA has specific duties and responsibilities associated with highway traffic and safety issues. It is not unlike other agencies in the federal government who have assigned responsibilities and missions. Congress has the right to hold hearings on critical issues affecting the American public but they should let the agencies responsible for issues handle many situations. The distinct responsibilities of the NHTSA will not be covered in this article as they have other responsibilities than investigation of recalls of automobiles. It is also the duty of Congress when an agency appears to not have taken action concerning specific issues that they hold them accountable. Congressional hearings are common but they should be based upon the actual need to hold them and not be conducted for political purposes. This is not to say that the current hearings are being held for political reasons but sometimes the appearance can give another impression.
Recalls overall is not something new and that being said the key point to be made is what happened and what is being done to correct the problem and prevent recurrence. System analysis must also be conducted to identify where the system failed and how to correct it. Another important note to be made is that no business is perfect and problems will occur. Two things must happen when issues are identified. The first is determining the cause and the corrective measures to be taken. The second involves the customer that is impacted. Customers do not like to hear about problems but keeping customers informed on issues and what you are doing is important. The worst thing a company can do is keeping the customer in the dark on issues and ignoring complaints from customers. Customers like to be informed about the products they buy and they like to know if they have issues that they are addressed with a response. This can occur either directly or through information posted on a web site.
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