When Buying a Used Car, Make Sure to Check for Recall Issues

In the aftermath of the record setting number of recalls of General Motors, consumers must be skeptical whenever purchasing a used car, according to CBS News. The National Traffic Safety Administration estimated that one in every four recalled cars are never properly repaired, posing a serious danger to those who purchase used cars with defective parts, CBS News reported. In 2013 alone, 3.5 million used cars needing recall repairs were put up for sale on websites such as Craigslist, according to Time Money. Recently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration created a tool that allows consumers to place the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) of a prospective used car into their database, which in turn will notify a customer if that specific vehicle has been subject to a recall within the last 15 years, but the work was never completed, according to CBS News. This is an especially useful mechanism because used car dealers in most jurisdictions have no legal duty to warn a customer about recall work that has not been completed, CBS News reported.