Toyota-owned truck manufacturer, Hino Motors, agreed to a settlement agreement with multiple U.S. agencies following fraud allegations related to emissions testing.
The DOJ said the conduct enabled Hino to secure approvals to import and sell more than 110,000 diesel engines, mostly in in heavy-duty trucks, in the United States between 2010 and 2022.
Hino has agreed to plead guilty and pay more than $1.6 billion to resolve various criminal and civil resolutions brought forward by the State of California and several agencies including the DOJ, the FBI, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The charges were leveled against Hino Motors and its North American units—Hino Motors Manufacturing U.S.A., Inc. and Hino Motors Sales U.S.A., Inc., and resolutions now await approval by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
In the plea agreement, Hino admitted that between 2010 and 2019, the company submitted false applications for getting engines approved and that its engineers regularly altered emission test data, fabricated data, and did not conduct tests properly.
Hino said it submitted falsifying carbon dioxide emissions test data, which led to incorrect fuel consumption values being calculated for the engines. “Engineers also failed to disclose software functions that could adversely affect engines’ emission control systems,” court documents state.
The EPA estimated that Hino’s engines emitted nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon dioxide (CO2), particulate matter, and nitrous oxide (N2O) at levels higher than regulatory limits.
“NOx and particulate matter are associated with serious health effects, including asthma attacks, respiratory illnesses, and cardiovascular issues, which can lead to lung damage and premature death,” said the DOJ.
In addition to the $1.6 billion payment, Hino agreed to “serve a five-year term of probation—during which it will be prohibited from importing any diesel engines it has manufactured into the United States.” Hino also has to implement a compliance and ethics program.
The agreements resolve all outstanding legal issues the company faces in the United States linked to the engine emissions issues, according to the company.
“In order to prevent a recurrence of this kind of issue, we have implemented company-wide reforms, including meaningful improvements to our internal culture, oversight, and compliance practices,” said Hino CEO Satoshi Ogiso.
Violating Regulations
The EPA had identified Hino’s noncompliance issues while carrying out confirmatory testing of the engines. Last week, the agency voided approvals for the 2010–2019 diesel engines used in heavy-duty trucks and non-road equipment—the “largest voiding action ever taken by EPA.”Out of the $1.6 billion in settlement amount agreed by Hino, more than $521 million is for criminal fines. The company will pay $525 million in civil penalties to resolve fuel economy, customs, and environmental claims brought by California and the federal administration.
Hino agreed to a recall program worth $144.2 million to modify all engines in 2017–2019 heavy-duty trucks found in order to bring them back into compliance with emission laws in California and elsewhere in the United States.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said Hino’s actions “violated federal environmental laws and endangered public health.”
“No company is above the law. I am grateful to our federal and state partners for their work to hold Hino accountable for its criminal misconduct.”
The Hino settlement is among several such agreements the DOJ recently secured against companies accused of violating emissions regulations.
Between 2014 and 2018, the company “illegally imported and sold hundreds of pavers, rollers and other non-road equipment containing diesel engines” which failed to meet the emission requirements under the Act.
