Toyota agrees to pay $16.4m fine

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Japanese car maker Toyota has agreed to pay a record $16.4m (£10.7m) to US safety regulators following recent safety concerns.

Toyota was asked to pay the fine for failing to inform the US government of safety concerns surrounding faulty accelerator pedals.

Millions of Toyotas were recalled earlier this year amid reports that the pedals could become stuck.

The fine is the largest ever handed out by the US transportation department.

Accelerator pedal problems forced Toyota to recall 2.3 million cars in the US in January, part of the eight million car recall worldwide.

"I am pleased that Toyota has accepted responsibility for violating its legal obligations to report any defects promptly," said transportation department secretary Ray LaHood in a statement.

"By failing to report known safety problems as it is required to do under the law, Toyota put consumers at risk. "