Toyota is recalling 120 of its Rav4 sports utility vehicles locally due to the possibility that, in the event of a crash, their seat belts could be damaged by a metal seat frame part.

The Japanese car manufacturer said on Thursday that 2.87 million vehicles have been affected globally by the recall.

Toyota Malta’s marketing manager Jonathan Cremona said that each of the 120 car owners will be contacted individually through a registered letter.

Toyota will perform the necessary changes to the seat belts free of charge at their local service centre, Mr Cremona said.

He warned that other Rav4 models requiring modifications may be circulating.

“There may be more due to the number of grey imports that we may not be aware of. If anyone has a Rav4 that has not been registered with us, they should contact us with the chassis number so that we can check if the car has a recall,” he said.

The car manufacturer said it would add resin covers to the metal seat cushion frames on all affected vehicles to prevent any metal pieces from cutting the seatbelt in the event of a crash, after it had received two reports in which rear seatbelts separated following crashes.

Toyota said it could not determine whether these incidents were linked to any injuries or fatalities.