Hino Motors, a subsidiary of Toyota, has recently been embroiled in a major emissions fraud scandal that has led to significant fines and penalties. The US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan has accepted the company’s guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to defraud the US government and consumers, as well as smuggling non-compliant goods into the country.
As a result of this plea, Hino has been ordered to pay over $1.6 billion in fines and forfeitures. The court imposed a criminal fine of $521.76 million on the company, along with a $1.087 billion forfeiture money judgment. In addition to these financial penalties, Hino will also serve a five-year probation period during which it is prohibited from importing its diesel engines into the US.
Furthermore, the company is required to implement a compliance and ethics program with a structured reporting system to ensure future adherence to environmental regulations. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has condemned Hino’s actions, stating that the company falsely certified compliance with the Clean Air Act in order to profit from selling illegal, polluting engines in the US.
According to court documents, Hino engineers engaged in fraudulent activities between 2010 and 2019, submitting false applications for engine certification approvals under the Clean Air Act. The company conducted improper tests, altered emissions data, and fabricated results without actual testing. This led to the import and sale of over 105,000 non-compliant engines in the US, primarily used in heavy-duty trucks.
The US Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division has expressed its commitment to upholding the rule of law by prosecuting fraud and enforcing emissions standards. Hino’s unlawful actions gave the company an unfair advantage over other law-abiding companies and generated over $1 billion in gross proceeds.
In a separate development, Hino Motors announced plans to shut down its Chinese diesel engine production subsidiary, Shanghai Hino Engine Company, citing deteriorating market conditions. This decision comes amidst increased scrutiny on the company’s compliance with environmental regulations and underscores the importance of transparency and accountability in the automotive industry.
