Toyota pays USD17.35m fines imposed by US NHTSA 

(MENAFN) Toyota North America chief Quality Officer, Ray Tanguay, stated that Toyota Motor Corporation will pay USD17.35 million in fines imposed by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), reported Xinhua News citing Detroit News.

Tanguay said that the amount was imposed as a result of Toyota's delayed recall of 154,000 2010 Lexus RX 350 and RX 450h cars over pedal entrapment problems.

The fine is the highest in US history for a single recall campaign, which came following the administration's investigation in May after it saw a rise in car consumer complaints.

In June, the Japanese carmaker told NHTSA it knew of 63 reports of possible floor mat pedal entrapment, and the NHTSA sought an instant recall for what it considered a serious safety issue and then opened an investigation into the company's conduct.

The automaker said that it is committed to the safety of its customers, and will continue to strengthen its data collection and evaluation process to make sure that it's well prepared to take quick action to meet customers' requirements.

It is worth noting that Toyota paid USD48.8 million in civil penalties in 2010 for failing to recall millions of cars in 3 separate campaigns.