The Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has upgraded Vauxhall's voluntary recall of Zafira B cars to a safety recall following fires in some vehicles.

The DVSA has acknowledged that the root cause of a small number of fires in Zafira B vehicles 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. 
 
The Agency has requested that the inspection and rework programme, which is already underway, be reclassified as a safety recall. This has no impact on the action being taken by Vauxhall, the carmaker said.
 
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.
 
The rework replaces the resistor pack and other faulty components and returns the heating and ventilation system 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.”