Ford has hired National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) veteran David Hines as its new chief auto safety officer amid numerous safety recalls the company conducted over the last year. The American automaker has been making headlines for numerous safety recalls spanning millions of vehicles. In 2025, Ford set an all-time automotive industry record by issuing 153 separate safety recall campaigns affecting roughly 12.9 to 13 million vehicles.Hines was the director of NHTSA's Office of Crash Avoidance Standards for over 13 years. His work included designing and implementing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for vehicle systems and components, including research on advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous vehicles. Now, at Ford, he will be responsible for the automaker's global product safety compliance, governance, and strategy. He will report directly to Steve Croley, Ford's chief policy officer and general counsel, The Detroit News reported.Additionally, Hines will lead a cross-departmental team from software and digital design, engineering, quality, manufacturing, and purchasing to ensure product safety design and quality throughout a product's lifecycle. "David's 30 years of experience in automotive engineering and safety will be an asset to the company as we continue to put quality first," Croley said in a statement.AdvertisementAdvertisementRecalls have been mounting at Ford, driving up warranty and repair costs. Motorbiscuit reported last month that over 288,000 Ford Explorers were recalled for roof rail covers that could detach and become road debris. 67,842 Ford Mustangs were recalled due to a defect in the wiper motor that causes the wipers to operate only at high speed in extremely cold conditions. Another recall was reported in June, involving 91,198 Ford F-150s that were recalled for the second time over issues with the daytime running lights (DRLs).Ford F-150Ford is also operating under heightened federal oversight after agreeing to a $165 million consent order in 2024. As part of the agreement, an independent monitor will scrutinize the automaker's recall practices, data analysis and regulatory compliance for three years. The action followed an NHTSA investigation that determined Ford had not acted quickly enough to recall vehicles affected by faulty rearview cameras.Ford has been taking important steps to improve the quality of its processes and products. The company was recently ranked as the top mainstream (mass-market) brand in the JD Power 2026 U.S. Initial Quality Study (IQS). However, issues in older models continue to surface and require addressing, creating a significant backlog for the company.