The lowest number of vehicles was recalled in the first quarter than in any quarter in more than a decade, and the quarter also saw the second lowest recall event total in almost five years.

The first quarter saw 3.7 million vehicles recalled across 215 separate events for a 50% plunge in affected units, according to Sedgwick data.

The quarterly totals reflected marked decreases, 13% fewer events quarter-over-quarter and 18% fewer year-over-year.

Recalled unit volume fell to its lowest quarterly level in more than 12 years, despite a single recall of more than 376,000 units over a steering-assist system power loss issue, Sedgwick said. 

Electrical systems were the leading cause of recalls in the quarter by both the number of recalls and affected units, sparking 44 events affecting a million vehicles, Sedgwick said.

Equipment issues were the second-leading cause of recalls, while back-over prevention problems ranked second by unit volume. Power train problems ranked third by recall event, while the single steering-related recall made steering issues third by volume.