One in 13 used cars has an outstanding safety recall that could see you fined £2,500 - here's how to check yours

The DVSA said 8% of cars checked last year had an unresolved recall alert

Recalls are issued by manufacturers if models are identified as having faults that could make the vehicle unsafe

Failure to have them rectified can lead to fines and 3 points on your licence

A new online tool lets you enter the details of your car - or one you're buying - to check for outstanding recalls

One in 13 second-hand cars has an outstanding safety recall the current owner wasn't even aware of.

That's according to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), which said that drivers who continue to use an unsafe vehicle - even if they did not know about it - risk fines of up to £2,500.

To help motorists find out if their car has one of these alerts, a new online checker has been launched this week for existing keepers of second-hand motors to see if their car has an unresolved recall notice issued by the vehicle manufacturer.

According to the latest figures, more than eight million used cars were bought last year, meaning over 650,000 of them could have an outstanding safety issue that has been highlighted by the maker.

Cars bought used are a particular problem, as unlike with new cars it is hard for the manufacturer to track down the owner. 

The DVSA said 87,000 of the 1.14 million vehicles ran through its system in 2017 had a safety recall that hadn't been acted on.

Failure to have one of these issues resolved could not only put the driver, their passengers and other road users at risk but also land the keeper with a hefty penalty of up to £2,500 and three points on their licence in the most serious cases.

Recalls are issued by vehicle manufacturers, who are responsible for contacting owners to notify them that their car may have a problem that needs to be rectified by an authorised dealer.

All recall repair work linked to safety issues is free of charge for customers and scheduled as a matter of urgency.

While the vehicle maker has a duty to tell the DVSA about the number of affected cars it has repaired every three months, a recall notice remains open indefinitely to ensure as many cars are sent back to dealerships to be fixed.

While recalls are easy to process for newer cars, which are likely to still be owned by the first keeper, problems can arise if a call-back has been issued on older vehicles that could have been sold on to another driver.

These tend to be common, as recalls can be issued years after the car was produced - such as the Vauxhall Zafira recall in 2016 to rectify problems with the model that was causing many to catch on fire - making it difficult for manufacturers to get in touch with the existing keeper

And it appears many of these vehicles are slipping though the net.

The DVSA's online MOT checker found that eight per cent of cars that owners researched last year had an outstanding recall alert.

That's despite it being the law for car dealers - including online sellers - to process any recalls before a vehicle is sold to a customer.

The same rules do not apply for motors sold privately, however, which might explain why some haven't had a recall actioned. 

To help drivers find out if their car is one of the those that has an outstanding notice, the DVSA has launched a new recalls checker system on its website.

Enter the registration of your vehicle - or one you're looking to buy - and it will tell you if and when recalls were sent out and if the car in question is one of those that has had repair work completed.

DVSA Chief Executive, Gareth Llewellyn, said it was the agency's priority to ensure that all vehicles on UK roads were safe to drive.

'Whether you’re buying a car from a dealership, through an auction or from a private seller, you want to be confident that the vehicle you’re buying is safe to drive. 

'Once you own a car you’ll also want to keep up-to-date with new safety recalls.'

Mike Hawes, chief executive at the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders,added: 'This new service makes it easy for drivers and potential buyers to check for outstanding recall alerts they or previous owners may have missed, giving them peace of mind their car is safe and reliable.