Causes of automotive recalls and classification of product and process failures: evidence from Brazil, the European Union and the United States

Abstract There is growing international concern regarding product quality failures that compromise public safety, as evidenced by the increasing number of automotive recalls and the scale of affected vehicles. This study examines the phenomenon, evaluates potential responses and analyses regulatory frameworks in Brazil (BR), the European Union (EU) and the United States of America (USA). Where data were not readily available, they were obtained from official databases and via web-scraping, enabling the analysis and classification of 12,466 automotive recalls for the period 2011 to 2019. The results indicate that recall effectiveness is shaped by region-specific policy priorities and systemic factors. For Brazil, it is recommended that regulatory agencies be strengthened, nationwide periodic inspections be implemented, and advanced safety technologies be incentivised. For the United States of America, it is recommended that litigation-driven incentives be balanced, predictive analytics be expanded, and supply-chain oversight be reinforced. For the European Union, it is recommended that data reporting be harmonised, certification protocols for embedded software be developed, and cross-border enforcement mechanisms be strengthened. Across jurisdictions, the exchange of best practices is likely to improve product quality, reduce warranty costs, and mitigate risks to public safety. The findings indicate the absence of global standardisation in recall data, the greater severity of product recalls relative to process recalls, and the urgent need for coordinated strategies to reduce systemic failures. This research represents a comprehensive effort to classify and compare recall data from over 428,754,988 vehicles by cause, distinguishing between product and process recalls. Finally, the validation of web-scraping as a methodological tool demonstrates its potential applicability for future studies across diverse fields.