Toyota’s Hino unit agrees to plead guilty in $1.6 billion settlement of U.S. emissions fraud case
U.S. officials announced a $1.6 billion deal with Toyota subsidiary Hino Motors late Wednesday to settle charges it deceived regulators about the amount of emissions spewed by its diesel engines.
Hino used altered emissions test data to get approval to import and sell more than 110,000 diesel engines to the U.S., most of which were installed in heavy-duty trucks made by Hino, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
As part of the deal, Hino will plead guilty to engaging in a criminal conspiracy to mislead regulators and consumers, violating environmental protection laws and endangering public health, Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a news release.
U.S. regulators and the state of California, which has strict vehicle emission standards, worked out criminal and civil remedies with Hino valued at more than $1.6 billion.
The deal includes a $521.76 million criminal penalty, $442.5 million in civil penalties to U.S. authorities and $236.5 million to California, according to the Reuters news agency.
“Hino’s actions directly undermined EPA’s program to protect the public from air pollution,” acting EPA administrator Jane Nishida said in a release.
The proposed settlement is contingent on approval from a federal district court judge in Michigan.
“Corporate crimes such as these endanger the health and well-being of innocent Americans, as well as the environment in which we all live,” said US attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Dawn Ison.
The deal includes a five-year term of probation during which Hino will be barred from importing diesel engines it has manufactured into the United States, and implements a comprehensive compliance and ethics program, according to the EPA.
Hino will also have to recall some trucks with engines violating emissions standards and spend some $155 million to replace marine and locomotive engines throughout the U.. to offset excess air emissions, according to the EPA.
