Stout recently concluded its multi-year engagement as consultant to the Independent Monitor appointed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for the Takata Airbag Recalls and Coordinated Remedy Program. Stout assisted the Independent Monitor in data collection, analysis, and consulting in oversight of the recalls and identified strategies to accelerate recall repairs.

The Takata Airbag Recalls are the largest and most complex automotive safety recall in U.S. history, affecting an estimated 67 million defective airbag inflators in the U.S. across 19 vehicle manufacturers. Together with NHTSA and the Monitor Team, affected vehicle manufacturers implemented a number of innovative recall strategies, never before used in automotive recalls, to identify the correct vehicle owner, communicate the urgency of completing the recall repair, overcome vehicle owner inconvenience, engage with franchised dealers, and partner with relevant third-party stakeholders.

As a result of these innovative strategies, approximately 50 million airbags have been repaired or accounted for, equating to a 79% recall completion rate for mature campaigns, which far outpaces those of other automotive recalls of older vehicles.

“The Takata recalls are an extraordinary example of the remarkable transformative change possible when industry, government, and independent expertise collaborate using research, data, and shared objectives,” said Stout Managing Director Neil Steinkamp. "The Monitor Team in coordination with NHTSA, hosted 11 Takata recall summits with affected vehicle manufacturers and created numerous working groups related to common areas of focus or consistent challenges for manufacturers. The data aggregation and visualization platform created by the Monitor Team was instrumental in analyzing trends in recall completion as well as identifying opportunities to develop new and innovative strategies to accelerate recall repairs and elevate completion percentages. The unique approach taken through this monitorship demonstrated how oversight and collaboration with industry can integrate with research and data processes to create widescale transformative change.”

Stout’s team was led by Steinkamp and Director Ray Roth. The team also included Stout professionals from several practices and industry-specific areas across the firm, including Transformative Change Consulting and Automotive.

A recent report by the Monitor describing the current state of the Takata recalls can be found here. More information about the Takata Airbag recalls can be found at NHTSA’s website here.