NHTSA Fines BMW $3 Million for Late Recall Reporting

BMW has agreed to pay civil penalties of $3 million for failing to report safety defects in a timely manner to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

By U.S. federal law, manufacturers are required to notify NHTSA of safety defects or noncompliance issues within five days of discovering the issue. A NHTSA investigation into 16 BMW recalls issued in 2010 found evidence BMW failed to report issues on time. According to NHTSA, the problems included recalls for motorcycles and cars.

“It’s critical to the safety of the driving public that defects and recalls are reported in short order,” says David Strickland, NHTSA administrator. “NHTSA expects all manufacturers to address automotive safety issues quickly and in a forthright manner.”

The 16 recalls investigated by NHTSA included campaigns for the 2007-2009 R-series models and K1200, 2005-2007 R1200GS Adventure, 2005-2009 R1200RT police models, 2008-2009 F650GS and F800GS, 2005-2011 K-series models, 2008-2010 F650GS and 2007-2008 G650X models.

Both BMW of North America and the parent company BMW have agreed to make internal changes in its recall reporting process.

The $3 million fine will be paid to the U.S. Treasury Department’s General Fund.

[Source: NHTSA, Drive On]

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By Dennis Chung