Templates and records · IATF 16949 · Clause 10.2.3

IATF 16949 8D report template for customer complaints

The format the automotive industry uses to answer a complaint: contain fast, find out why the part was made and why it was not detected, and close the door on that line and similar ones.

In one sentence

The 8D report documents, in eight steps, the response to a complaint or serious problem —team, description, containment, occurrence and non-detection root causes, permanent actions, validation, prevention of recurrence and closure—, and it is the method most customers require to meet the documented problem-solving process IATF 16949 calls for (10.2.3), including read-across to similar processes and products and updating of the FMEA and control plan.

Content reviewed on 17 October 2026

Where the standard requires it: IATF 16949 · Clause 10.2.3 Clauses are those of IATF 16949:2016, which always applies together with ISO 9001:2015. The AIAG and VDA manuals cited are industry references that apply when the customer requires them; they are not part of the standard.
Type of information: Mandatory record Evidence of corrective action to be retained (10.2.3, building on 10.2.2 of ISO 9001)
Who fills it in: Multidisciplinary team Led by customer quality, with production, engineering and, where relevant, the supplier involved
When: On receipt of the complaint Within the customer’s deadlines for containment, analysis and closure
How long it is kept: Organisation’s policy IATF requires a documented record retention policy that meets statutory, regulatory, organisational and customer requirements (7.5.3.2.1).

What the standard requires

What IATF 16949 demands and what it leaves to your judgement

IATF requires a documented problem-solving process with defined approaches according to the type and scale of the problem, containment and interim actions, root cause analysis with its method and results, systemic corrective actions that consider the impact on similar processes and products, verification of effectiveness and review of the FMEA, control plan and other documents.

The standard does not name the 8D: the customer requires it in its CSRs, often with its own form and response deadlines. Where the customer prescribes a method, that method must be used.

Unlike the ISO 9001 nonconformity report, the 8D always separates two causes —why the failure occurred and why it was not detected— and requires action on both. IATF adds error-proofing (10.2.4) as the preferred way of closing off the cause.

Read it in context: Improvement, in the IATF 16949 Academy

Structure

Fields the template should include

D1 · Team and leader
D2 · Problem description: what, where, when, how many, with the customer’s data
D3 · Containment: stock at the customer, in transit and in the plant, and sorting results
D4 · Occurrence root cause and non-detection root cause, with the method used
D5 · Permanent corrective actions chosen
D6 · Implementation and validation of the actions
D7 · Prevention of recurrence: read-across to similar items and FMEA and control plan update
D8 · Closure and team recognition

Example

Example: loose seat bolt on the customer’s line

Company, people and figures are fictitious: the example only shows what a properly completed record looks like.

Field	Content
D2 · Problem	3 SA-0331 brackets with a loose nut at assembly · batch 26-1402 · 14 May 2026
D3 · Containment	4,800 parts sorted with a torque test at the customer, in transit and in the warehouse within 24 h · 11 rejected
D4 · Occurrence	Electrode from the new supplier with lower conductivity: insufficient current at the previous setting
D4 · Non-detection	Current monitoring only raised an alarm and did not lock the part; the once-per-shift torque test missed the drift
D5 · D6 · Actions	Automatic current-based lockout · setting validated for the new electrode · torque test after every electrode change
D7 · Read-across	Same lockout on welders SP-1 and SP-3 · FMEA and control plan revised · supplier changes made subject to internal approval
Effectiveness	Three months without complaints and torque Cpk above 1.6
D8 · Closure	18 August 2026, accepted by the customer

At the audit

Mistakes auditors commonly flag

Only why the failure occurred is analysed, not why it was not detected.
Containment stops at the plant gate and forgets stock in transit and at the customer.
Root cause given as “operator error” and closed with a training session.
Actions are not extended to similar lines or parts.
The FMEA and the control plan do not change after the 8D.

In Kimobox

How this record is kept in Kimobox

1Each customer complaint is handled with the 8D methodology built into the system.
2Each 8D is linked to its complaint, root cause and actions, ready to send to the customer.
3Extending the corrective action to similar processes takes one click from the original record, with its own effectiveness check.
4PPM and complaint indicators are calculated from shop-floor data.

Frequently asked questions

What people ask us before getting started

What does 8D stand for?

Eight disciplines: form the team, describe the problem, contain it, find the root cause, choose permanent actions, implement and validate them, prevent recurrence and close by recognising the team. Some versions add a preliminary planning step.

Is the 8D mandatory under IATF 16949?

The standard requires a documented problem-solving process, not the 8D specifically. But if the customer prescribes the 8D or another method, its method must be used, and most automotive customers do.

What is the non-detection cause?

The reason why the planned control failed to catch the defect before it reached the customer. The 8D requires it to be corrected as well as the occurrence cause, because closing only one leaves the other door open.

Keep your IATF 16949 records without loose templates

We'll show you the module running with data similar to yours.

Request a demo

Keep exploring

Sources

Where each figure comes from

References to the official text in force. If a standard is revised, this page is updated and the review date says so.

IATF 16949:2016 — Quality management system requirements for automotive production and relevant service parts organizations IATF · First edition, October 2016
ISO 9001:2015 — Quality management systems — Requirements ISO · 2015 ed., the basis of IATF 16949
IATF 16949 Sanctioned Interpretations and FAQs IATF Global Oversight · Continuously updated