Manufacturer Communications Portal

Federal regulations mandate that vehicle and vehicle equipment manufacturers comply with Early Warning Reporting requirements. One of the EWR requirements is that all manufacturers of motor vehicles or motor vehicle equipment, including low volume and child restraints, submit to NHTSA copies of their manufacturer communications. Manufacturers should submit all notices, bulletins, and other communications including warranty and policy extensions and product improvement communication sent to dealers, distributors, owners, purchasers, lessors, or lessees regarding any defect, failure or malfunction beyond normal deterioration in use, failure of performance, flaw or other unintended deviation from design specifications whether it is safety-related or not.

Five easy steps to set up an account and submit manufacturer communications (MC) data using NHTSA’s Manufacturer Communications Portal (MCP) online. 

1. Apply for an MCP account.

• Before you can begin submitting MC data to NHTSA, you must apply for an MCP account by emailing the MCP Helpdesk at mc.helpdesk@dot.gov. 

2. Receive MCP account information.

• When approved, NHTSA will send you your MCP account information via email.

3. Set up Login.gov account.

• Log in to the MCP. The login is through Login.gov, a General Services Administration service that provides a centralized authentication gateway for secure and private access to participating government programs. Your Login.gov account and your MCP account are linked via your email address. Your Login.gov account email and your MCP account email must match. Otherwise, you will not be able to access the MCP. 
• If you do not have an existing Login.gov account with an email that matches your MCP account email, set up a Login.gov account following the Create your Login.gov account information on the help page. 
• Login.gov is managed by a government entity outside NHTSA. If you have questions or problems creating an account or logging in via Login.gov, please visit Login.gov/contact. Complete and submit the form, and someone from Login.gov will respond.

4. Log in to the MCP.

• Once you have successfully set up your Login.gov account, please test it to ensure you can log in by clicking the Login link at the top right of the Login.gov home page. 
• Visit the MCP site and ensure you can log in. Click on the Manufacturer Communications tile. Navigate to the Help link at the bottom left of the page to download the MCP User Guide which will help you understand the MCP features and guide you through the process of submitting MC data. 
• If after a successful login to Login.gov you are unable to reach the MCP, please contact the MCP Helpdesk at mc.helpdesk@dot.gov.

5. Submit data.

• Once you successfully log in to the MCP, you can submit MC data online—individually or in bulk as described in the Submitting Data section below.

The MCP is an online NHTSA application that allows manufacturers to submit their manufacturer communications (MCs). The MCP eliminates the need for manufacturers to build the required index file themselves, instead collecting the required information via an online form. As of May 2024, the MCP has been revamped to streamline the MC submission process and enhance user experience. NHTSA encourages manufacturers to use the “nothing to report” option to indicate that the manufacturer has reviewed their records and does not have anything that requires reporting.

There are two ways you can submit MCs:

Submitting Individual Manufacturer Communications

Once logged in to the MCP, click on “New Communication,” complete the multistep online form and submit your MC.

Submitting Manufacturer Communications in Bulk

Submit MCs in bulk by including them in a ZIP file. The ZIP file must contain an index file in XML format. Once logged in to the MCP, click on “Manufacturer Index Communication (MIC)” and complete the online form to upload your ZIP file.  

To create your ZIP file for the MIC, follow the steps below. Refer to the MCP User Guide (to access the User Guide, once logged into the MCP, navigate to the Help section) for more details.
 

1. Prepare your XML-based index file (see download links below), either:
   1. From scratch using the XML Schema, or 
   2. By converting your Excel index file to XML using NHTSA’s Excel-to-XML Conversion Tool.
2. Create a ZIP file containing your XML index file and all associated PDFs, ensuring every file referenced in each communication in the index file is included in the ZIP file. 

Training Material

• To access the MCP User Guide, log in to the MCP then go to the Help link at the bottom left of the page and download the User Guide. 
• You can also get an overview of the Manufacturer Communications Portal by accessing MCP Overview for Manufacturers.

Assistance in Reporting

Manufacturers with questions should contact our helpdesk at mc.helpdesk@dot.gov.

Access to Publicly Available Manufacturer Communications  

NHTSA regularly publishes publicly accessible manufacturer communications it receives.

Confidentiality Requests

A request may be submitted for confidential treatment of certain Early Warning Reporting data to NHTSA.

Confidentiality is covered by 49 CFR Part 512.

New process for COVID-19.