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DVSA reclassifies rework for Vauxhall Zafira fire issue as safety recall

The issue comes after a number of drivers reported issues with fires in the Zafira B, with over 130 vehicles affected.

The DVSA acknowledged that the root cause of the fires is improper repair of the thermal fuse of the resistor in the heating and ventilation system, undertaken outside of Vauxhall’s authorised service and maintenance processes and schedule. 

Vauxhall said the reclassification as a safety recall has no impact on the action it’s taking, with the carmaker having announced last month it was recalling over 220,000 vehicles.

Under the rework programme – which is carried out free of charge – the resistor pack and other faulty components are replaced and the heating and ventilation system returned to its original design condition.

“We recognise that owners may have vehicles which have been improperly repaired without their knowledge or before they bought the vehicle,” said Rory Harvey, chairman of Vauxhall Motors. “Safety is our priority and we have been working tirelessly in the past weeks to find the root cause and contact owners to explain the situation and our actions. The DVSA’s acknowledgement of the root cause is an important milestone but the important thing now is to ensure that all Zafira B owners bring their vehicles in for inspection and rework.”

All 234,938 Vauxhall Zafira B owners have been contacted by letter to inform them of the issue and explain how they can remain safe pending inspection. To date, Vauxhall dealers have inspected and repaired more than 45,000 vehicles. The goal is to have all vehicles inspected within a 10 to 12 week time span.

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Natalie Middleton

Natalie has worked as a fleet journalist for over 20 years, previously as assistant editor on the former Company Car magazine before joining Fleet World in 2006. Prior to this, she worked on a range of B2B titles, including Insurance Age and Insurance Day.