EDITORIAL: Toyota fine was a mere wrist-slap

Toyota was slapped with a $16.4 million fine Monday for waiting four months to notify federal safety regulators of its defective accelerators. It's the maximum the law allows, but a pittance for one of the world's largest automakers.

To deter such dangerously irresponsible corporate behavior in the future, Congress should increase the penalty the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration can impose. To be effective, fines have to sting - and $16.4 million won't, not when the company reported $200 billion in revenue last year.

Automakers have five business days to notify the NHTSA once they determine a safety defect exists. Toyota knew about the sticky pedal problem by Sept. 29, according to the agency. That's when it issued repair procedures in Europe and Canada. And it knew motorists in the United States were having the same problem. But it didn't recall vehicles here until late January. "They knowingly hid a dangerous defect . . . and did not take action to protect millions of drivers and their families," U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said.

The fine isn't Toyota's only worry, of course. The automaker could face additional penalties if investigators find infractions related to other defects, and the problems have prompted more than 200 lawsuits. The episode remains a public relations horror.

Still, penalties should drive a change in behavior. On that score, this one is short on horsepower. hN