TOYOTA FACES a proposed $16.4 million (around €12.2 million) fine from US regulators – the maximum penalty allowed under current laws – after the car maker failed to notify the government in a timely way about flawed accelerator pedals that were the subject of a massive recall in January.
The US Transportation Department said this week that safety regulators were still determining whether Toyota had additional violations that would warrant more penalties. “We now have proof that Toyota failed to live up to its legal obligations,” US transportation secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. “Worse yet, they knowingly hid a dangerous defect for months from US officials and did not take action to protect millions of drivers and their families.”
The penalty by the department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would be the largest fine ever levied against an car manufacturer by the US government. Toyota has the right to appeal the penalty.
The previous largest fine was $1 million against General Motors because of a windshield wiper failure in 2002 and 2003 models.
Toyota did not address the proposed fine specifically in a statement but said it had already taken “a number of important steps” to improve communications with regulators and customers over safety matters.
Documents obtained from Toyota showed the automaker had issued repair notices in Canada and Europe to address complaints about ‘sticky’ accelerator pedals, sudden acceleration and sudden engine revving in late September, but did not begin a US recall until late January.
Evidence at one of the US congressional hearings into the recalls showed problems were initially spotted in Ireland and Britain in December 2008, alerting the firm to a potential issue with the accelerators.
Car firms operating in the US are legally obligated to notify safety regulators within five business days if they determine a safety defect exists and the documents showed Toyota was aware US consumers were experiencing the same problems, the department said.
Toyota announced in late January that it would recall about 2.3 million vehicles in the United States because of sticky accelerator pedals. The automaker has offered to fix the pedals or to replace them completely.
It was one of a handful of recalls to plague Toyota in recent months and mar its reputation. Details of the fines come as Toyota said yesterday it will recall nearly 13,000 vehicles in South Korea due to problems with floor mats.
Problems related to the fitting of rubber floor mats presented a potential risk to the safe operation of the accelerators, the South Korean government said. Toyota said no accidents relating to floor mats have been reported in South Korea.
“In the US, Toyota recalled its vehicles citing three different reasons,” said transport ministry official Park Gwang-yul. “The defect found in Toyota vehicles in South Korea coincides with one of them.”
– Reuters/Bloomberg