Recall rates drop but supply chain woes remain

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Certain sectors such as automotive saw a significant rise in recall activity with an 155% increase

According to findings in the Sedgwick European product safety and recall index report, while many countries and businesses eased pandemic-imposed restrictions to operations, there were lingering concerns about supply chains and regulatory oversight across the industries surveyed.

The recall index report reveals a decrease in overall product recalls activity in Europe by 2.4% in the first quarter of 2022, indicated by a decline in events within the pharmaceutical (28.0%), medical devices (17.3%), and food and beverage (10.3%) sectors.

However, certain sectors such as automotive saw a significant rise in recall activity with an 155.1% increase, as well as consumer products including clothing (131.3%), toys (9.0%) and electronics (44.8%).

“While many countries and businesses eased pandemic-imposed restrictions to operations, there were lingering concerns about supply chains and regulatory oversight and a significant rise in the number of recalls across a number of the five sectors assessed,” said Mark Buckingham, international product recall consultant at Sedgwick.

Q1 2022 recall highlights include:

The 227 automotive recalls in Q1 2022 represented an 155.1% increase compared to Q4 2021. This rise may be an indicator of regulatory oversight practices returning to normal or manufacturers finding challenges with new regulations.

For food and beverage, the data collected showed a 10.3% drop in recalls to 1,202 in Q1 2022, compared to Q4 2021.

Pharmaceutical recall activity across the EU and UK dropped 28.0% in Q1 2022, compared to the previous quarter, with 67 recalls recorded.

The 649 medical device recalls in Q1 2022 saw an overall drop of 17.3% compared to Q4 2021. This is also lower than the 722 recalls from the same quarter last year.