Recall and safety rating lookup
Before you buy a car — or while you are deciding how to insure one — two federal records are worth a minute: its safety recalls and its NHTSA crash-test ratings. This lookup pulls both live from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Look up a vehicle
Recalls: the model versus your car
A recall campaign covers a range of vehicles; whether the repair has been done on your car is a separate question that only your VIN answers. That is why this page links to nhtsa.gov/recalls: type the 17-character VIN from your dashboard or registration and it shows open recalls on that exact vehicle.
Where safety fits in a California rate
California's rating regulation lets insurers use vehicle characteristics — engine size, safety and protective devices, damageability, repairability and theft deterrents — as one of the optional factors, always ranked behind your driving record, your mileage and your years of experience (10 CCR 2632.5). How much a given feature moves a given company's price varies by company, which is one more reason to compare quotes on the exact car you are considering before you buy it.
Sources (official)
- NHTSA — recalls lookup (search your own VIN)
- NHTSA public API (recalls and 5-Star Safety Ratings data)
- California Code of Regulations, title 10, section 2632.5 (vehicle characteristics as a rating factor)
Results come live from NHTSA and cover the model, not your specific car. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether a recall is still open on your vehicle. Recalls and crash ratings are safety information; how a company prices a particular vehicle varies by company.
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How do I check if my car has an open recall?
Enter your 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. This lookup shows recalls for the model; the VIN search shows whether the repair is still open on your exact car.
Do recalls or safety ratings change my car insurance rate in California?
California lets insurers use vehicle characteristics — including safety and protective devices, damageability and repairability — as an optional rating factor (10 CCR 2632.5(d)(8)). How much weight a company gives it is set in its approved rating plan and varies by company.
Where does this data come from?
Directly from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public database, fetched when you search. Nothing you type is stored by this site.