Auto Safety Group Says Taxis, Ride Shares In NYC May Be Operating With Safety Recalls
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- New warnings were issued Monday on taxi cab safety.
An auto safety group said the taxi cab or Uber you ride in may have safety problems you don't even know about, CBS2's Nick Caloway reported.
When you hail a cab you might be unknowingly riding in a car with an open safety recall.
A review by the Center for Auto Safety found that thousands of cabs in New York City and across the country are not required by regulators to get safety recalls fixed before picking up passengers.
So unless you check the VIN, or vehicle identification number, which is not easy to do, you have no way to know if your ride is safe. The recalls can include deadly defects such as faulty airbags.
"There are no cosmetic recalls. Recalls are only done for safety reasons, defects or a violation of standards," CAS Executive Director Jason Levine said.
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Levine is calling for change, asking regulators to require companies to fix those recalls before picking up customers.
Caloway talked to some riders, who said that should be common sense.
"Well it's logical, of course," passenger Bonnie Yarry said.
"You're in a car, you expect to be safe," added Cesar Macay of Brooklyn.
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The Center for Auto Safety has also called on ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft to require drivers to fix open safety recalls before taking passengers, Caloway reported.
The group said so far that hasn't happened. Uber told CBS2 in a statement that the company regularly reminds drivers to check their vehicles for any open recalls.
Uber said if a driver's car has a recall putting riders in imminent danger, those are called "do not drive" recalls, the driver is blocked from using the app.
The New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.