How to Leverage Recall Opportunities for Service Revenue and Used Car Acquisition

Vehicle recalls are a common occurrence in the U.S. In fact, in the first half of 2024, more than 14 million vehicles in the country were subject to some sort of recall. Issues ranged from prevention to electrical system concerns, powertrains, and safety features like seats or airbags.¹ And too often, customers don’t bring their vehicle in for necessary repairs for a number of reasons. Let’s explore why vehicle recalls are an overlooked opportunity for car dealerships by exploring why customers don’t act on recall notices, how to encourage customers to bring their vehicle in for repairs, and what else you can do to boost revenue opportunities when there’s a recall. 

Why do many consumers ignore recall repairs?

With so many recalls – and varying levels of clarity in their communication – consumers often overlook a need for repairs, and have numerous questions about those repairs, including:

• Does this affect the safety of my vehicle?
• Can I still drive my car?
• Is the recall dangerous or can I put off this repair for the future?
• What will it cost?
• How long will it take?² 

Questions like these show that most customers see recalls as a burden and “just another chore” that they are not always eager to fix. But that’s where the opportunity comes in for dealerships, by catering to customers with excellent service, you can encourage these repairs and other customer actions. 

How can you encourage customers to bring their vehicles in for recall repairs?

1. Communicate clearly: Use direct and concise language to explain exactly what is wrong with the vehicle, and what is at stake. Explain what the solution is and what action is required by them. This can help vehicle owners interpret the risks and urgency of the recall.
2. Focus on outreach: Ultimately, it’s in the customers hands whether or not they choose to bring their vehicle in – but they can only act if they are sufficiently aware of the recall and what is needed from them. When there are recalls, ensure you have systematic outreach planned to get in touch with each customer. While this is above-and-beyond, a high level of customer service will certainly go a long way. Contact customers through multiple channels, like email, SMS, through the mail, phone calls. To make sure this is possible, keep your customer database up to date with relevant contact info.
3. Emphasize they are free of cost: Don’t let customers avoid a repair due to the fear of costs, make sure your communication clearly expresses that this type of repair is free. 
4. Offer targeted incentives: Let customers know that if they bring their vehicle in for recall repairs within a set period of time, they can benefit from a gift card, a discount on a future service, and complementary car wash or other partnered service, or whatever else you may be able to offer. This excellent customer service also encourages customers to stay loyal to your business.¹ 
5. Be specific about the timeline: One major hurdle for customers is their concern that repairs could take up extra time, making it hard for them to go about their normal lives. It’s important to emphasize exactly how long you predict the repairs to take, and to explain any accommodations they can expect to receive – for example, that they will receive a loaner car for anything taking longer than a few hours.²

How can you use recalls to boost other opportunities at your dealership?

Now that you’ve managed to get customers in the door to get their repairs completed, what can you do to take it one step further for your business? 

Create memorable positive experiences 

Customers who visit for a recall repair will likely return in the future if they have a positive experience.³ Whereas most customers shift to independent mechanics, a recall is the perfect opportunity to get your existing customers back in the door and remind them of everything your business can offer. Reinforce your strong relationship and use this as a moment to re-ignite communication with that customer. 

Offer pro-active notices about future repairs

Let the customer know that they are due for an oil change in two weeks, that their breaks will need to be replaced in the near future, and other observations you make about their vehicle when they bring it in. This is a great opportunity to offer to complete those repairs now, so that the customer doesn’t have to lose additional time in the future getting work done. You can also schedule those appointments in the calendar while they’re at your business, ensuring you retain those future customer visits.² 

Encourage browsing and tell your customers what their car is worth

If you have a customer who has an older vehicle, has significant mileage or one that is up for costly repairs, their recall visit is a perfect time to get them thinking about trading in for a new vehicle in the near future. Start mentioning current manufacturer  incentives or perhaps offer them a new loaner car so they can see all the features available. Also when your service technicians start work on the vehicle, they can easily use tools like ClearCar to get a quick appraisal on the vehicle which can be shared with the customer. Follow-up in the coming days and weeks to ensure that once they do become ready to shop for a new vehicle, your dealership is the first place they visit.¹ 

Increase your trade-ins with Clear Car 

With ClearCar your service team can easily do a quick appraisal to put a number on a car before you start on any recall work. With ClearCars AI Damage Detection, technicians can easily take pictures of the vehicle and ClearCar Capture will identify any areas of the body that have damage summarized in a detailed report you can share with customers. Explore how ClearCar can improve your dealership's trade in process by scheduling a demo today. 

Sources

1. Urban Science. 2024. “Navigating surging auto recalls: Turning challenges into opportunities for OEMs, dealers in the U.S.” Urban Science. Retrieved January 20, 2025. https://www.urbanscience.com/insightlab/navigating-surging-auto-recalls-turning-challenges-into-opportunities-for-oems-dealers-in-the-u-s/
2. Kelly Blue Book Fixed Ops Marketing Team. 2023. “Vehicle recalls: Why consumers don’t take action and what dealerships can do about it.” Kelly Blue Book. Retrieved January 20, 2025. https://b2b.kbb.com/dealer-resources/blog/how-to-capture-more-vehicle-recall-work/ 
3. Sean Reyes. 2025. “Leveraging Vehicle Recalls to Build Trust and Drive Sales.” Recall Masters. Retrieved January 20, 2025.  https://www.recallmasters.com/leveraging-vehicle-recalls-to-build-trust-and-drive-sales/