How To Tell A Genuine Car Recall From A Scam Call, Text Or "Mobile Repair" Visit, And What To Do If You've Replied

Genuine UK car recalls are free, are registered with DVSA and are usually announced by a letter from the manufacturer to the registered keeper.¹² Any call, text or email that asks for payment or bank details, or pushes you to "confirm" through a link, should be treated as a scam until you have checked it independently.

Genuine Recall Or Scam?

Genuine recalls never charge you. They name your vehicle and the defect, and they give a contact you can verify on the manufacturer's own website.

Our guide to what a recall letter from the manufacturer means shows the parts of a genuine notice.

How To Check A Recall Message In Two Minutes

Check your registration here for the recall, look up the campaign code with our lookup, and call the manufacturer or a dealer using the number on our helplines page.

The three checks are:

1. Run your registration through the checker above. A genuine recall for your car will usually show.
2. Look up the campaign code with our recall code lookup, or on the manufacturer's own recall page.
3. Call a franchised dealer using the number on our manufacturer recall helplines page, never the number in the message.

Common Recall Scam Patterns

Watch for urgent "confirm your airbag appointment" messages, requests for a deposit, links to look-alike websites and strangers offering to collect your car.

Genuine manufacturers sometimes do call owners, and some use partner companies to book home repairs for urgent airbag recalls, which makes a fake call harder to spot. The safe rule is to verify every call yourself. Fake recall messages tend to follow familiar patterns:

• Airbag urgency. Takata airbag recalls are real and widely reported, which makes them an easy hook. See Takata airbag recalls.
• A deposit to secure a slot. Recall repairs are free, so there is nothing to secure.
• Look-alike websites. A link that looks like a manufacturer's site but asks for card details.
• Collection by strangers. Manufacturers can arrange collection or mobile repairs, but only through their own dealers.¹ Confirm any visit by calling the dealer yourself.

When A Genuine Manufacturer Contacts You By Email Or Text

Some manufacturers now email or text owners about recalls as well as writing. A genuine message names your car, often by model and registration, explains the recall and points you to the manufacturer's own website or a franchised dealer. It never asks for card details.

Treat even a genuine-looking message as a prompt to check, not as the place to act. Close the message, run your registration through our checker, and call the manufacturer on the number from our manufacturer recall helplines page. That single habit defeats almost every recall scam, because a fraudster cannot control a number you look up yourself.

Helping Older Relatives

Older drivers are more likely to own the older cars that current airbag recalls cover, and they may be targeted for that reason. A short conversation helps: explain that recall repairs are normally free, that a genuine recall will not mind them checking, and that they can ask you before replying to any message. Running their registration through our checker together is a quick way to see whether a real recall applies.

What To Do If You’ve Already Replied Or Paid

Call your bank straight away using the number on your card, change any passwords you shared, and report it to Report Fraud.

The steps in order are:

1. Call your bank on the number on the back of your card and explain what happened.
2. Change passwords for any account you mentioned or logged into from the message.
3. Report it to Report Fraud, or to Police Scotland in Scotland.³
4. Keep the evidence: screenshots, the number, the time of the call.

How To Report A Recall Scam

Report it to Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or online, or to Police Scotland on 101 in Scotland, and forward suspicious texts to 7726.³⁴

Report Fraud replaced Action Fraud on 4 December 2025 for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.³ Forwarding a scam text to 7726 is free on most UK networks, and you can report a scam call by texting 7726 with the word "Call" followed by the number. Screenshots of suspicious emails can go to report@phishing.gov.uk.⁴

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is The Takata Recall Real?

Yes. Takata airbag recalls are genuine and the replacement is free. Check your car with our Takata airbag recall page.

Do Dealers Ever Call About Recalls?

Some do. Verify any call independently by ringing the dealer on a number you find yourself.

Will Someone Come To My House To Fix A Recall?

Manufacturers can arrange mobile repairs, especially for urgent recalls.¹ Confirm the booking through the dealer before anyone visits.

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Data: DVSA vehicle recall data (Open Government Licence v3.0), updated 15 October 2026.