CarMax Provides Consumers with Information About Open Recalls Prior to Sale
Richmond, VA, 2015-6-11 — /EPR Retail News/ — CarMax was founded to fundamentally change the way Americans buy used cars. For more than 20 years, CarMax has dedicated itself to providing customers with a straightforward, transparent car-buying experience that is based on integrity.
Drivers across the country recently have been forced to deal with an unprecedented number of manufacturer recalls. It is an issue that deserves all of our attention.
CarMax Provides Customers with VIN-Specific Recall Information
CarMax is committed to providing the most transparent car buying experience in the industry. To ensure our customers are well informed about recalls, CarMax provides vehicle-specific information about open recalls to every retail customer prior to purchasing a used vehicle from our stores.
Because many of our customers visit us first at carmax.com or on our mobile site or app, every vehicle on carmax.com includes a link to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) VIN lookup website, with the VIN pre-populated, allowing customers to obtain open recall information on any CarMax used vehicle.
Before any customer purchases a used vehicle, a CarMax associate and the customer review the vehicle’s NHTSA VIN-specific recall report. After this initial review, customers sign a form acknowledging receipt of this NHTSA recall report with their sales documents. We recommend that our customers register their vehicle with the manufacturer and urge them to have open recalls fixed immediately following purchase.
Open Recalls Can Only Be Cleared at a Manufacturer-Authorized Facility
The current recall system is based on the manufacturer’s relationship with its dealers and registered vehicle owners, and not with independent used auto retailers, like CarMax. Among other things, this means that manufacturers have not authorized CarMax to complete recall repairs and close out recalls.
Our experience shows us customers are in the best position to act on recall information directly with a manufacturer-authorized dealer. We have found that dealers are often more likely to provide timely recall repair to customers rather than to a competitor, like CarMax, so we encourage customers to have recalls repaired at a manufacturer-authorized facility.
CarMax is built on integrity – and has been recognized nationally for this commitment. Ninety five percent of our purchasers say they would recommend us to family and friends. We believe this continued loyalty is due to the straightforward and transparent car buying experience that we continue to provide.
Additional Resources:
CarMax Recall Notification Video: How we ensure our customers are well informed about recalls online and in our stores
Infographic on the U.S. Recall System
Examples of CarMax recall communications can be found here.
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Email: PR@Carmax.com