NHTSA Recall & Complaint Watch Scraper

Fleet, warranty, marketplace, and automotive operations teams use this actor to monitor public recall and complaint updates.

Input make, model, model year, components, and keywords from public NHTSA recall and complaint APIs.

Get source-linked recall and complaint alert, digest, and report rows for fleet, warranty, and marketplace review workflows.

Store Quickstart

1. Use the first input example with dryRun=false.
2. Keep notifyOnNoNew=false so unchanged scheduled checks emit zero rows and zero charges.
3. Review billingEventName in the output before increasing feed count.

Input Examples

{
  "feeds": [
    {
      "id": "accord-2020",
      "name": "2020 Honda Accord watch",
      "make": "Honda",
      "model": "Accord",
      "modelYear": 2020,
      "components": "electrical system,engine",
      "keywords": "software,stall,brake"
    }
  ],
  "watchTerms": "airbag,brake,stall,electrical system",
  "lookbackDays": 30,
  "datasetMode": "action_needed",
  "notifyOnNoNew": false,
  "emitReport": true,
  "dryRun": false
}

{
  "feeds": [
    {
      "id": "accord-2020",
      "name": "2020 Honda Accord watch",
      "make": "Honda",
      "model": "Accord",
      "modelYear": 2020,
      "components": "electrical system,engine",
      "keywords": "software,stall,brake"
    }
  ],
  "watchTerms": "airbag,brake,stall,electrical system",
  "lookbackDays": 30,
  "datasetMode": "new_only",
  "notifyOnNoNew": false,
  "emitReport": false,
  "dryRun": false
}

{
  "feeds": [
    {
      "id": "accord-2020",
      "name": "2020 Honda Accord watch",
      "make": "Honda",
      "model": "Accord",
      "modelYear": 2020,
      "components": "electrical system,engine",
      "keywords": "software,stall,brake"
    }
  ],
  "watchTerms": "airbag,brake,stall,electrical system",
  "lookbackDays": 30,
  "datasetMode": "action_needed",
  "notifyOnNoNew": false,
  "emitReport": true,
  "dryRun": true
}

Sample Output

{
  "actorName": "nhtsa-recall-complaint-watch-scraper",
  "rowType": "nhtsa_watch_digest",
  "feedId": "accord-2020",
  "feedName": "2020 Honda Accord watch",
  "checkedAt": "2026-05-11T00:00:00.000Z",
  "fetchedAt": "2026-05-11T00:00:00.000Z",
  "sourceUrl": "https://api.nhtsa.gov/recalls/recallsByVehicle?make=Honda&model=Accord&modelYear=2020",
  "warnings": [],
  "status": "action_needed",
  "newDocCount": 1,
  "totalDocCount": 1,
  "changedSinceLastRun": true,
  "actionNeeded": true,
  "reviewNote": "Review the source-linked public record and update the watchlist if needed.",
  "signalTags": [
    "watch_term_hit"
  ],
  "watchTermHits": [
    {
      "term": "recall",
      "docNumber": "20V771000",
      "title": "Honda Accord electrical system recall"
    }
  ],
  "documents": [
    {
      "docNumber": "20V771000",
      "title": "Honda Accord electrical system recall",
      "docType": "NHTSA_RECALL",
      "publicationDate": "2020-12-10",
      "primaryAgency": "NHTSA",
      "component": "ELECTRICAL SYSTEM",
      "sourceUrl": "https://api.nhtsa.gov/recalls/recallsByVehicle?make=Honda&model=Accord&modelYear=2020"
    }
  ],
  "billingEventName": "nhtsa-watch-alert"
}

Output fields

• rowType: nhtsa_watch_digest
• billingEventName: one of nhtsa-watch-alert, nhtsa-digest, or nhtsa-report
• documents[]: nested official public records with source URLs
• watchTermHits[]: matched public-record terms for review
• reviewNote: source-linked review note, not agency guidance or certification

Pricing

This actor charges only when it emits a billable alert, digest, or report row:

• nhtsa-watch-alert: $0.08 per watchlist alert row
• nhtsa-digest: $0.25 per non-empty digest row
• nhtsa-report: $5.00 per generated report row

No-change runs emit zero default dataset rows and zero charges when notifyOnNoNew=false.

Compliance

• Uses official public data from nhtsa-recalls-complaints-api.
• Do not perform mass VIN checks, infer vehicle ratings, or imply NHTSA endorsement.
• No login, API key, cookie, credential, CAPTCHA bypass, private data, or agency mark is used.
• Rows are source-linked observations for review workflows, not professional guidance or agency determinations.

See Also

• cpsc-product-recall-marketplace-watch-scraper
• epa-echo-enforcement-facility-watch-scraper
• sec-edgar-material-disclosure-watch-scraper