Vauxhall Zafira fires: significant reform at DVSA following Committee criticism

Practices and procedures at the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency have been under review following the Transport Select Committee’s report on Vauxhall Zafira Fires, it has emerged. Today, the Committee publishes the Government Response to the report, which outlines the changes that have been taking place.

In Vauxhall Zafira Fires, the predecessor Committee said Vauxhall was too slow to begin a full investigation into fires affecting Zafira B models and too quick to attribute them to improper and unauthorised repair.  The Committee also made recommendations on vehicle product safety and the recalls process.

The DVSA is still investigating Vauxhall’s handling of the recalls process. In accepting many of the Committee’s recommendations, the Government’s response outlines how practices at the DVSA have been changed or are under review.

These include:

• The Department for Transport and DVSA will review their existing powers of enforcement to ensure they are being used effectively.
• A standalone Enforcement Directorate (incorporating the Vehicle Safety Branch) has been created through structural transformation, resulting in more resource for enforcement activities.
• The possibility of automatic fails at MOT stage for vehicles with the most severe, unremediated, defects.
• The method of reporting and managing safety recalls has been changed to increase consumer confidence and ensure public safety.
• Discussions with key groups including the insurance industry, to encourage the reporting of defects and sharing of information.

Chair of the Transport Committee, Lilian Greenwood MP, said:

“I am pleased that the Government has listened to, and is acting upon, the recommendations made by the Committee in the last Parliament.

“Vauxhall customers are, quite rightly, still looking for answers. We await the outcome of the DVSA investigation into Vauxhall’s actions, which we will be examining closely.

“The public needs to be confident that their safety comes first. This response demonstrates that ministers are reassessing key procedures and practices at the DVSA and in their working relationships with other key bodies. We welcome the commitment made by the Government to report back to the Committee by 31 March 2018.”

The Government’s response, published today, is available on the Committee’s website here.

The Committee’s report, Vauxhall Zafira fires, published on 28^th April 2017, can be viewed here. 

In 2015, Vauxhall’s Zafira B model became a cause for concern when a distinctive pattern of fires was identified. Some of the fires were serious enough to destroy entire vehicles and cause damage to the surrounding environment. Although the Model B Zafira was no longer on the market by the time Vauxhall became aware of the fires, the company sold more than 230,000 Model B Zafiras with manual or no air conditioning between 2005 and 2014.