Fiat Chrysler hit with record $105 million fine - CBS News
Fiat Chrysler is preparing to pay a record fine of $105 million, the largest ever imposed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, for mishandling safety recalls on millions of vehicles. Find models in latest Fiat Chrysler recall Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said the penalty should push Fiat Chrysler to getting the vehicles off the road. On April 5, 2013, Magdaleno and Raymundo Sanchez barely escaped a fiery wreck where their 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee exploded on a Los Angeles freeway when it was rear-ended by a drunk driver. Their lawyer, Fernando Chavez, said a collision with the Jeep's plastic gas tank behind the rear axle caused it to burst into flames. The placement of that gas tank made that vehicle very unsafe, very dangerous, and that's what this recall's about," Chavez said. To fix it, Chrysler issued a recall to install a trailer hitch for 1993 to 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees and 2002 to 2007 Jeep Liberties. Seventeen months after the recall was announced, only 3 percent of more than a million vehicles had been fixed. NHTSA is now fining Fiat Chrysler $105 million for mishandling the recall and 22 others that involve more than 11 million vehicles. Source: www.cbsnews.com
