Toyota pays $32mn fine over recalls

WASHINGTON: Toyota has agreed to pay 32.4 million dollars in fines over its handling of two auto recalls, bringing total penalties levied on the firm to 48.8 million this year, officials said.

“Toyota will pay the maximum fines allowable under the law — 16.375 million dollars in one case and 16.050 million in the other — in response to the department’s assertion that it failed to comply with the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act for reporting safety defects to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. The two penalties come on top of Toyota’s record 16.4-million-dollar fine assessed in April to settle claims the automaker hid accelerator pedal defects blamed for dozens of deaths. Toyota issued a series of mass recalls of around 10 million vehicles worldwide in late 2009 and early 2010 that undermined the company’s once stellar reputation and triggered US congressional investigations.
“Safety is our top priority and we take our responsibility to protect consumers seriously, I am pleased that Toyota agreed to pay the maximum possible penalty and I expect Toyota to work cooperatively in the future to ensure consumers’ safety.” said LaHood.
The 16.375-million-dollar fine was tied to an investigation completed Monday over Toyota’s recall of nearly five million vehicles with accelerator pedals that can become entrapped by floor mats, the Department of Transportation said. “Automakers are required to report any safety defects to NHTSA swiftly, and we expect them to do so,” said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland.-Reuters

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