8:25 am, July 16, 2025
Car dealers have been advised NOT to retail Citroen or DS models affected by the airbag safety recall by a team of motor trade lawyers.
Lawgistics head of legal services Nona Bowkis has warned used car dealers with vehicles in stock waiting for the airbags to be replaced to put sales on hold until they are fixed, or sell them as ‘spares or repairs’.
Some 120,000 owners of second-generation Citroen C3s, built between 2009 and 2016, and DS3 models built between 2009 and 2019, have been told by the manufacturer to stop driving their cars immediately.
Stellantis wrote to all owners at the end of June with a ‘stop drive’ notice and told them to book their cars in to be rectified asap.
The fix takes dealers around an hour-and-a-half to complete but some customers have been told they will need to wait months for an appointment.
With private owners likely to be prioritised ahead of the motor trade, many used car dealers could now be stuck with these models in stock until 2026.
Affected cars being sold at auctions are currently being handed over to buyers with stickers telling trade buyers ‘not to drive them’ while Auto Trader has begun to flag adverts on its site of cars that are due the safety recall.
A large yellow banner across the top of adverts (above) on the used car listings platform says the car is the possible subject of a ‘safety recall’ and to ‘contact the seller to find out more’.
There are currently more than one thousand affected cars being advertised on Auto Trader by trade sellers.
Stellantis issued the ‘stop drive’ recall at the end of June following problems with the Takata-manufactured airbags.
The airbags are used by a variety of manufacturers, including Citroen and DS, and the affected cars were already part of a safety recall started more than a year ago.
However, the latest order follows the death of a woman in France last month after she sustained injuries from an airbag in a 2014 Citroen C3.
Lawgistics solicitor Bowkis said the situation has been further complicated by the fact the affected cars will pass an MOT with this safety recall in place.
She said: ‘Any used car dealer with one of these vehicles to sell would be best advised to wait until the vehicle is fixed or sell it as an unroadworthy vehicle.
‘It’s not an ideal situation and probably made worse by the fact Stellantis will likely prioritise consumer repair requests over trade requests.
‘There should be less issues for used car dealers on vehicles which they have already sold, but they should take advice on their specific circumstances if consumers seek rejection.’
Car dealers cannot sell a car with a recall due on it if that recall would deem it to be in an ‘unroadworthy condition’, explained Bowkis.
She said: ‘Under section 75 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, a motor vehicle is considered unroadworthy if its use on the road would be unlawful due to issues with its construction, equipment, or if it poses a danger of injury to any person.
‘This is why we have separate invoices for spares and repairs via which unroadworthy vehicles can be sold to people whom dealers have made fully aware that the vehicle cannot be used on the road if and until it’s fixed.’
Bowkis said the DVSA MOT tester notice about the Citroen and DS models was ‘unhelpful’ as it ‘suggests recalled vehicles can pass an MOT’. She added this was often considered the test of ‘roadworthiness’.
‘The DVSA should do better given the potential scale of this issue following an actual stop driving notice from a manufacturer,’ she said.
Last week, Car Dealer reported on the ‘immense pressure’ Citroen dealers were under to fix the problems.
Retailers told of phone lines being clogged by customers attempting to book their cars in and long shifts to complete the warranty work.
Stellantis said it was focussing on completing the replacement of the airbags on affected cars ‘as swiftly as possible’. It is not currently known how many cars have already been fixed.
Customers can check if their car is affected on the Citroen website or phone the recall helpline on 0800 917 9285.
