How to Check a Car’s Recall History by VIN (Free)

• The free check is at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Enter the 17-character VIN or the license plate to see unrepaired safety recalls on that exact car.
• It covers recalls from the last 15 years from major automakers. It does not show recalls that were already repaired.
• Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers, parts and labor included. By federal law that free-repair duty generally does not apply if the car was first sold more than 15 years before the recall.
• Dealers may not sell new cars with open recalls, but federal law does not ban the sale of used cars with open recalls, and private sellers have no duty to fix them first.
• NHTSA counted 982 safety recalls affecting over 30 million vehicles in 2025, and advises checking at least twice a year.

1. Find the VIN. It is 17 characters, on the lower left of the windshield (read it from outside), on the registration card and often on the insurance card. On a car you are buying, compare the windshield VIN with the one on the title.
2. Go to nhtsa.gov/recalls and enter the VIN, or the license plate and state.
3. Read the result. “0 unrepaired recalls associated with this VIN” means no open safety recall in NHTSA’s data for that car. Otherwise each open recall is listed with the problem, the risk and the remedy.
4. Check the manufacturer’s site too. Most automakers have their own lookup (for example Honda’s recall search). It can show campaigns NHTSA does not list, such as non-safety service campaigns.
5. Ask a dealer for the service history. A franchised dealer for the brand can see which recalls were completed on that VIN, which NHTSA does not show.
6. Sign up for recall alerts once you own the car. NHTSA notes that used-car owners may not get recall letters.

NHTSA also notes that VINs are added to new recalls continuously, so a just-announced recall may not show for every affected car right away. If you need the full history of completed recalls, ask a brand dealer to print the VIN’s service and campaign record.

An open (unrepaired) recall means the manufacturer or NHTSA found a safety defect or a failure to meet a federal safety standard, and this car has not had the fix yet. Common examples are air bags, brakes, steering and electrical faults.

Sometimes a recall is announced before parts or a software fix are ready. The car still shows as open, and the owner is notified again when the remedy is available. Until then, follow the recall notice: if it says “Do Not Drive,” do not drive the car. Takata air bag recalls on some older Hondas and other makes have carried this warning.

The repair itself is free at an authorized dealer for that brand, including parts and labor, regardless of how many owners the car has had. The one legal limit: under 49 U.S.C. § 30120, the free-remedy requirement does not apply if the car was bought by its first owner more than 15 calendar years before the recall notice. Many makers still fix older cars, so ask.

• New cars: No. Federal law (49 U.S.C. § 30120(i)) bars a dealer from selling, leasing or renting a new vehicle covered by a recall notice until the defect is fixed.
• Rental fleets: Rental companies are also barred from renting, selling or leasing a covered rental car with an open safety recall until it is fixed, with limited exceptions. This was added by the Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act of 2015.
• Used cars from a dealer: No federal law bans it. The FTC has acted against dealers that advertised used cars as safe or thoroughly inspected without clearly disclosing open recalls, and some states have their own disclosure rules. Ask the dealer in writing whether the car has any open recalls, and check the VIN yourself.
• Private sales: A private seller has no federal duty to fix a recall before selling. You inherit the recall, and the fix is still free at a dealer (subject to the 15-year rule above).

Practical rule: if a recall is open and the remedy is available, ask the seller to have it done before you pay, or make the sale conditional on it. It is usually a short dealer visit.

A clean recall result says nothing about accidents, title brands, odometer problems or flood damage. Use it together with a vehicle history report, a free salvage and flood check (see our flood-damaged car guide), and an independent pre-purchase inspection. If you are looking at a Honda, our used Honda Accord checklist covers model-specific recalls.

Got a recall notice or an inspection report you are not sure about? Ask Mike Cooper, a certified automotive and truck technician, whether it is urgent and what the dealer should do.