--- title: How to respond to a SCAR (with an 8D example) | FactoryQA description: "How to respond to a customer SCAR: containment, occurrence and escape root causes, corrective actions that get accepted, and a worked 8D example." image: https://factoryqa.com/hubfs/fqa-og-res-how-to-respond-to-a-scar.png --- [![FactoryQA](https://factoryqa.com/hubfs/fqa-logo-white.png)](https://factoryqa.com/) Features [**Platform overview**Every module, and how they connect](https://factoryqa.com/feature-overview)[**AI features**Purpose-built AI in every module](https://factoryqa.com/ai-powered-quality-management)[**Integrations**ERP connectors and imports](https://factoryqa.com/integrations) [**Dashboard**Every module in one scorecard](https://factoryqa.com/products/qualitybi-dashboard)[**Tasks**Every to-do, from every module](https://factoryqa.com/products/task-management)[**Compliance**Readiness for your standard](https://factoryqa.com/products/compliance)[**Quality Plans**Ballooning, PFMEA, control plans, PPAP](https://factoryqa.com/products/quality-plans)[**Documents**Revisions, approvals, sign-offs](https://factoryqa.com/products/document-control)[**Issues**NCRs, CAPAs and SCARs](https://factoryqa.com/products/non-conformance-management)[**Inspection**Sheets, first articles and SPC](https://factoryqa.com/products/inspection-sheets)[**Calibration**Gages, due dates and Gage R&R](https://factoryqa.com/products/calibration-management)[**Preventive Maintenance**Scheduled work orders and repairs](https://factoryqa.com/preventive-maintenance-factoryqa)[**Supplier Quality**Approved suppliers, portal and SCARs](https://factoryqa.com/products/supplier-management)[**Audits**Schedules, checklists and findings](https://factoryqa.com/products/audit-management)[**Learning Management**Courses, quizzes and the training matrix](https://factoryqa.com/products/learning-management-system)[**QMS Generator**Your manual from an interview](https://factoryqa.com/products/qms-generator) Services [**Services overview**Certification, consulting and supplier quality](https://factoryqa.com/services)[**Get Certified**Three paths to AS9100, ISO 9001 or ISO 13485: do it yourself, join a workshop, or work 1-1 with a consultant.](https://factoryqa.com/certification-services)[**Certification Workshops**A 9-week, small-group program with 18 expert-led sessions and an AI-built document kit.](https://factoryqa.com/certification-cohorts)[**QMS Consulting**A consultant on your team from training through implementation, internal audit and the registrar audit.](https://factoryqa.com/qms-consulting)[**Supplier Quality Services**Qualification, management, training and security services for your whole supply base.](https://factoryqa.com/supplier-quality-services) [Pricing](https://factoryqa.com/pricing) [Log in](https://app.factoryqa.com/auth/login)[Book a demo](https://factoryqa.com/get-a-demo)[Start free](https://app.factoryqa.com/auth/register) Features[**Platform overview**](https://factoryqa.com/feature-overview)[AI features](https://factoryqa.com/ai-powered-quality-management)[Integrations](https://factoryqa.com/integrations)[Dashboard](https://factoryqa.com/products/qualitybi-dashboard)[Tasks](https://factoryqa.com/products/task-management)[Compliance](https://factoryqa.com/products/compliance)[Quality Plans](https://factoryqa.com/products/quality-plans)[Documents](https://factoryqa.com/products/document-control)[Issues](https://factoryqa.com/products/non-conformance-management)[Inspection](https://factoryqa.com/products/inspection-sheets)[Calibration](https://factoryqa.com/products/calibration-management)[Preventive Maintenance](https://factoryqa.com/preventive-maintenance-factoryqa)[Supplier Quality](https://factoryqa.com/products/supplier-management)[Audits](https://factoryqa.com/products/audit-management)[Learning Management](https://factoryqa.com/products/learning-management-system)[QMS Generator](https://factoryqa.com/products/qms-generator) Services[**Services overview**](https://factoryqa.com/services)[Get Certified](https://factoryqa.com/certification-services)[Certification Workshops](https://factoryqa.com/certification-cohorts)[QMS Consulting](https://factoryqa.com/qms-consulting)[Supplier Quality Services](https://factoryqa.com/supplier-quality-services)More[**Pricing**](https://factoryqa.com/pricing)[Log in](https://app.factoryqa.com/auth/login)[Book a demo](https://factoryqa.com/get-a-demo) Supplier quality # How to respond to a SCAR (with an 8D example) How to respond to a customer SCAR: containment, occurrence and escape root causes, corrective actions that get accepted, and a worked 8D example. FactoryQA quality teamNovember 12, 2026 A SCAR from a customer is a test of your quality system as much as a request to fix one problem. Customers accept responses that show the problem is contained, the real cause is understood and proven, and the fix changes the process. They reject responses that blame an operator, promise more inspection, or arrive without evidence. Here is how to write one that gets accepted the first time. *1***Acknowledge**Same day *2***Contain**Often 24 to 48 hours *3***Root cause**Why made, why missed *4***Corrective action**One for each cause *5***Implement**With evidence *6***Verify**Next lots checked Closed when your customer accepts the evidence ## 1. Acknowledge it the same day Confirm you received the SCAR, name the person who owns the response and confirm the due dates. Read the customer's requirements: many ask for containment within 24 to 48 hours and a full response within 10 to 30 days, and some require their own form or an 8D. If something in the SCAR is unclear or you think the part conforms, ask now, with data, not at the deadline. ## 2. Contain everywhere the problem could be Containment protects the customer while you investigate. List every place suspect parts could be and what you did there: - At the customer: sort, replace or rework at their site, with quantities - In transit: shipments on the way, by packing slip - In your finished goods and work in process - At your own suppliers, if a purchased material or process is involved Give quantities checked, found and quarantined, and say how parts shipped from now on are identified as checked (a mark on the label, a certified lot). "100% inspection" is a good containment action and a poor corrective action. ## 3. Find two root causes, not one Every escape has two causes: why the defect was made (occurrence) and why your controls did not catch it (escape, or non-detection). Customers increasingly reject responses that only answer the first. Use 5 Whys or a fishbone diagram for each, and stop at a cause you can act on in the process, not at a person. Then prove it. A verified root cause can be turned on and off: reproduce the defect by recreating the condition, or show the data that ties the cause to the defective parts (tool life records, a machine log, a material cert). Say how you verified it. ## 4. One corrective action for each cause For the occurrence cause, change the process so the defect cannot be made, or is far less likely: a tool life limit, a fixture change, a poka-yoke, a program fix. For the escape cause, change the controls so it would be caught: an in-process check at the right frequency, a better gage, a check added to the control plan. Retraining is rarely enough on its own; if the method allowed the mistake, change the method. ## 5. Implement, then prevent recurrence Give dates, owners and evidence for each action: the revised work instruction, the updated control plan and PFMEA, photos of the fixture. Then look sideways: which similar parts, machines or processes have the same weakness? Applying the fix to them is what most 8D forms call preventing recurrence (D7), and it is what convinces a customer the system learned something. ## 6. Show it works Say how you will prove the actions are effective and when: for example, the next five lots inspected on the characteristic with zero rejects, or capability data showing the process is centered and capable. Send the evidence when you have it, even if the customer does not ask. ## A worked example A machine shop's customer rejects 14 of 200 aluminum housings: bore Ø12.000 +0.015 / -0 measured up to 12.021. | Discipline | What the response says | | --- | --- | | D1 Team | Quality manager (owner), cell lead, programmer, inspector | | D2 Problem | Bore oversize by up to 0.006 mm on lot 24-117, 14 of 200 parts, found at the customer's receiving inspection | | D3 Containment | Customer stock sorted on site (14 rejects found, 186 good); 320 parts in finished goods measured, 9 oversize quarantined; shipments marked "bore 100% checked" until closure | | D4 Root cause (occurrence) | Boring insert worn past its offset limit. The tool life counter was set to 400 parts; the insert lasts about 250 on this alloy. Verified by running a worn insert, which reproduced the oversize bore | | D4 Root cause (escape) | In-process bore check once every 50 parts, set before the cycle time was cut; final inspection sampled 5 parts per lot | | D5 and D6 Actions | Tool life set to 200 parts; bore checked every 20 parts and charted; control plan and PFMEA revised (rev D); program updated with a wear offset alarm | | D7 Prevent recurrence | Tool life limits reviewed for the four other parts bored on the same machine; two lowered | | D8 Verification | Next five lots: bore 100% checked, zero rejects; capability on the bore Cpk 1.6. Containment released after lot five | ## What gets a SCAR response rejected - "Operator error" or "human error" as the root cause, with retraining as the fix - Containment described as the corrective action ("we now inspect 100%") - No escape cause - Actions with no owner, date or evidence - A root cause that was assumed, not verified - Nothing done for similar parts ## Copy this outline **SCAR response**: SCAR number, part number and revision, lot, quantity, owner, date. **D1** Team and roles. **D2** Problem: requirement, actual, quantity, where found. **D3** Containment: every location checked, quantities, how good parts are identified. **D4** Root cause of occurrence and of escape, method used, how each was verified. **D5** Corrective action for each cause. **D6** Implementation: owner, date, evidence. **D7** Preventing recurrence: documents updated, similar parts and processes. **D8** Effectiveness: how and when it will be shown, and the result. If your customer uses FactoryQA, their SCAR email links to a response page you fill in without creating an account: containment, root cause and how you verified it, the permanent corrective actions and preventive actions. You see the issue's details, photos and documents on the same page. The link works for 30 days. Running SCARs with your own suppliers? See [Supplier Quality](https://factoryqa.com/products/supplier-management). ## Frequently asked questions ### How long do I have to respond to a SCAR? Whatever the SCAR and your customer's quality requirements say. Many customers ask for containment within 24 to 48 hours and a full response, with root cause and corrective action, within 10 to 30 days. Ask early if you need more time. ### Is retraining an acceptable corrective action? Rarely on its own. If the method allowed the mistake, change the method: a fixture, a check, a poka-yoke, a clearer instruction. Retraining can support a process change. ### What if the root cause is at our own supplier? Say so, contain at your supplier too, and issue them your own SCAR. You remain responsible to your customer for the response and the evidence. ### Can we dispute a SCAR? Yes, with data. If you believe the parts conform, send your measurements, the gage and method used, and ask to compare methods. Do it before the containment deadline, not after. ### What is an escape root cause? The reason your controls did not catch the defect before it shipped, as opposed to the reason it was made. A complete response gives a corrective action for both. Keep reading ## More from Resources [Supplier quality**SCAR vs CAR vs CAPA vs 8D: what is the difference?**NCR, CAR, SCAR, CAPA and 8D explained: what each one is, who owns it, when to open it and how they fit together, with a comparison table and an example.](https://factoryqa.com/resources/scar-vs-car-vs-capa-vs-8d)[Supplier quality**Customer complaints and supplier inspections in one QMS**Why customer complaints and incoming supplier inspections belong in the same QMS, how the loop between them closes, and what software should do for both.](https://factoryqa.com/resources/customer-complaints-and-supplier-inspections-in-one-qms)[Guide**QMS software for metal fabrication: what to look for**What a metal fabrication shop should look for in QMS software: drawing-based inspection, welder qualifications, outside processors, NCRs, gages and PM.](https://factoryqa.com/resources/qms-software-for-metal-fabrication-what-to-look-for) ## Try it on your own process: start free. 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