Toyota to Pay $16 Million to Settle Orange County Recall Case

Toyota Motor Corp. has agreed to pay a $16 million fine to resolve a civil lawsuit filed by Orange Country, Calif., that alleges the company engaged in deceptive business practices related to safety recalls of its vehicles.

Orange County, which claims standing because it is home to Toyota's U.S. sales headquarters, sued in state court in March 2010. The county charges that the company illegally failed to inform Californians about vehicle flaws when it became aware of them.

Toyota denies any wrongdoing but says it is trying to end legal issues associated with its recalls of more than 7 million vehicles in the U.S. since 2009 for mechanical defects linked to sudden acceleration.

The company paid federal fines totaling $66 million in 2010 and 2012 because it did not promptly notify U.S. safety regulators of those defects. In February Toyota reached a $29 million settlement with the attorneys general of 29 states.

The company agreed in December to pay $1.1 billion in economic claims to Toyota, Lexus and Scion owners who said safety problems hurt the resale value of their vehicles. Toyota still faces hundreds of individual personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits.