Forest River audit query AQ14002
Safety Act Violations. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this audit query about the recreational vehicle/trailer on 3 model years (2014). Opened Sep 30, 2014, closed Jul 31, 2015 after 10 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedIn a Consent Order executed on July 8, 2015, Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) admitted that it violated the Safety Act by: failing to submit accurate early warning reports; not filing certain field communications or reports of Canadian safety campaigns; not providing copies of notices, bulletins, and other communications as required; failing to file certain quarterly recall reports in a timely manner or with complete information; sending notices to dealers without required information; failing to submit communications to manufacturers, dealers, owners and purchasers directly related to a defect or noncompliance; failing to notify vehicle owners and dealers of defects and noncompliances; not timely notifying NHTSA of safety-related defects within five days; failing to conduct timely recalls for Recall Nos. 15V-080 and 15V-156; and failing to respond fully to NHTSA's October 2, 2014 Special Order by the deadline. As part of the Consent Order, NHTSA assessed a total civil penalty of $35 million against Forest River for its violations of the Safety Act. The civil penalty consists of a cash payment and stipulated penalties. Forest River paid the $5 million cash penalty on July 17, 2015. Forest River is required to retain an independent monitor to conduct audits of the company's compliance with the Consent Order and Safety Act. Failure to resolve any issues discovered in those audits will result in portions of the stipulated civil penalties coming due. The Consent Order also contains performance obligations, including retention of an in-house consultant, actions to remedy past noncompliances with the Safety Act, creation of publicly available best practices for Safety Act compliance, employee training, and industry outreach. The population listed in this closing resume is based on Forest River?s untimely recalls and does not include other issues addressed by the Consent Order, which relates to Forest River?s entire business. Based on the Consent Order, Forest River's admissions that it violated the law, and its ongoing performance obligations, this audit query investigation, AQ14-002, is closed. Closure of this AQ has no bearing on the terms of the Consent Order, including Forest River's ongoing performance obligations or legal obligations, and does not represent a determination by the agency as to Forest River's performance under the Consent Order to date.
A Audit Query is an audit of the manufacturer's own reporting obligations — early-warning data, recall notices, remedy — rather than of a vehicle condition. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one is closed. A audit query ends with NHTSA’s finding on the recall it examined — the remedy stands, is widened, or a new campaign follows; the file names the recall it concerned and NHTSA’s closing resume carries the reasoning.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2014 Forest River Flagstaff; 2014 Forest River Palomino Solaire; 2014 Forest River Rockwood.
A vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs AQ14002 a recall?
No. A audit query is NHTSA asking questions, not a recall. A safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number and a duty to repair for free; this one closed without one. Whether one particular vehicle has an open recall is a VIN question at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Is AQ14002 still open?
No. It closed on Jul 31, 2015 without a recall.
Which vehicles does AQ14002 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 3 model years: 2014 Forest River Flagstaff, 2014 Forest River Palomino Solaire, 2014 Forest River Rockwood. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.