Feds hit Honda with $70 million fine

Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY
12:57 p.m. EST January 8, 2015


(Photo: IIHS)


Federal auto safety regulators said Thursday that they are assessing a total of $70 million in fines against Honda for violating federal safety reporting requirements.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the two $35 million fines also come with Honda's agreement to increase NHTSA oversight and enhance its third-party audits to make sure its reporting in current in the future.

NHTSA said the first fine relates to Honda's failure to report 1,729 death and injury claims to NHTSA between 2003 and 2014.

Honda has previously disclosed the undercount, saying that its own investigation found that it misinterpreted what issues should be counted.

The second civil penalty relates to Honda's failure to report certain warranty claims and claims under "customer satisfaction campaigns," in which a manufacturer quietly agrees to fix defects on cars even when they are outside the normal warranty period, over the same number of years, NHTSA said.

"Honda and all of the automakers have a safety responsibility they must live up to, (which is) no excuses," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a statement.

Honda has been at the center of the recalls involving air bags made by automotive supplier Takata of Japan. The bags can injure passengers with metal and plastic shrapnel when they deploy in an accident.

Last year, NHTSA issued more than $126 million in civil penalties, which was a record. exceeding the total amount collected by the agency during its forty-three year history.

"These fines reflect the tough stance we will take against those who violate the law and fail to do their part in the mission to keep Americans safe on the road," Foxx said.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2015/01/08/honda-fine-nhtsa/21445701/