The Defective Product Administrative Center of the State Administration for Market Regulation issued a specification on the reporting of defective automobiles last week, clarifying the ways in which such products can be reported.

According to the specification, any institute or individual may submit defect reports to defective product recall technical organizations via the internet, telephone, e-mail and letter.

To take effect from Oct 1, 2021, the specification notes that defect reports submitted by consumers are among the most important information sources for discovering product defects.

With the development of the automobile industry and the improvement of consumer safety awareness, the number of defect reports has increased rapidly year by year.

Defect reports should include information such as the vehicle identification number, fault description and the information of the reporter.

Recall technical organizations evaluate the effectiveness and uniqueness of the defects and transfer the information to automobile manufacturers. Then, the automakers carry out fault cause analysis and feedback.

On Aug 2, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued two auto recall announcements, involving two German brands－Mercedes-Benz and BMW.

Mercedes-Benz will recall 40 imported and China-made vehicles, including the A-class, C-class, G-class, GLA SUV, GLB SUV and GLE SUV, produced between Sept 20, 2016 and Feb 27, 2021, due to faulty communication software.

According to the automaker, it will repair the communication software for the recalled vehicles through authorized dealers to eliminate safety risks.

In addition, Mercedes-Benz will recall 3,329 imported GLE SUVs produced between May 14, 2019 and Feb 18, 2020, starting from April 29,2022.

The automaker said that the left rear reversing light control unit of some recalled vehicles may not meet relevant national compulsory standards due to an error in a supplier's manufacturing process.

On the same day, BMW (China) Automotive Trading announced the recall of 8,097 imported vehicles, including the 1 series, 2 series, 3 series, X1, X3 and X5, produced between Feb 17, 2005 and Aug 27,2017, due to safety risks in airbag inflators.

When these cars' airbags are being inflated, the flawed gas generating agent could cause the airbags to overinflate and burst, according to the State Administration for Market Regulation.

BMW has promised to replace the faulty parts for free, to help eliminate safety concerns.