Toyota delays safety recall resulting in $174 million fine
The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration fined Toyota this year for the issue of Toyota’s Lexus models having pedals that stuck under the floor mats. This was a similar problem for Toyota in 2010 with several other recalls. An investigation proved that the sticky pedal was not caused by electronics but by mechanical defects. With a blemished reputation, Toyota recalled over fourteen million defective automobiles to fix the issue with the pedal months after they were aware of the issue. Toyota paid the fine without admitting any misconduct, which they had done previously in 2010 with three other delayed recalls. The three separate fines totaled $48.8 million. Though Toyota was able to recover, the next year the maximum fine doubles to $35 million. Another fine or safety problem could cost automakers in sales and in the company’s reputation.
Toyota stated that the company is, “dedicated to the safety of our customers and we continue to strengthen our data collection and evaluation process to ensure we are prepared to take swift action to meet customers’ needs.” Michelle Krebs from Edmunds.com reports that “This is sending a message to Toyota and all manufacturers, ‘Don’t mess around, take action right away!” With the latest settlement, Toyota has agreed to make changes internally to their quality assurance and control as well as perform a review of safety issues.