Consumer Alert: More than 70,000 New Yorkers are driving unsafe vehicles

More than 70,000 New Yorkers are driving a vehicle national highway officials say is too dangerous to drive. That’s the finding of a Carfax report released Wednesday. And New York is fourth on the list of states with the most dangerous cars. These are cars that have the most serious recalls – “do not drive” and “park outside”, These recalls are rare, issued only when there’s a serious risk to your safety.

By law, manufacturers have to notify you by mail. But you could have accidentally thrown it out. Also, you may be the second or third owner of the car and the manufacturer couldn’t locate you. But these recalls are urgent. These are cars that can catch fire or have been deemed not safe to drive.

“And while all recalls are important, these are particularly urgent,” said Patrick Olsen, Editor in Chief of Carfax. “They tell owners to literally park their car. Automakers will arrange for someone to come tow it to a dealership and bring it back to you. For ‘park outside’ cars, they’re warning you that the risk of fire is so great, not only should you not park in your garage, you shouldn’t even park next to your garage. And if you can do it at all, park away from any structure.so these are urgent recalls.”

Carfax found there are 2.5 million people driving around with unrepaired cars. And more than 70,000 of those folks live in New York state.

With the help of Carfax, this is what everyone listening needs to do immediately:

· Find and write down your VIN. It’s on the lower left of your car’s windshield. It’s also on your insurance card. It’s 17 characters.

· Make sure your car doesn’t currently have a recall on one of two free sites. The government site or the Carfax are both free.

· Then download an app that will alert you if your car is ever recalled. There’s the government app which is Safercar and the Carfax app. All you do is register your car and you’ll get an alert.

There are currently more than 200 vehicles with the most serious recalls. Click here to see if your vehicle is listed.