Money talks louder than justice !

Cynics will not be surprised at the outcome of a scandal that smeared the safety reputation of Toyota, the world's biggest auto maker.   In 2009 the world was shocked when owners started to experience power surges and inability to stop their cars, leading to numerous crashes - some of which were fatal. Toyota initially dismissed the complaints but the carnage continued and eventually it was found that a manufacturing fault caused accelerators to stick and decline to decelerate - and ill fitting car mats could  interfere with the pedals travel range.  There were also brake problems in some models.

This led to the world's biggest safety recall - and over ten million Toyota cars received remedial work to restore safety.  Toyota's reputation took a hit - and it is only now recovery from the resulting sales slump.

This scandal has been brought to a close with the US government imposing a $ 1.2 billion fine on Toyota, but in the terms of this settlement, not a single person will face charges for allowing cars with a known fault to remain on the road and continue to main and kill their owners because the cause was kept hidden by the vehicles manufacturer.   This could be construed - as manslaughter !

This case sends the wrong message to the captains of industry.  Safety should be the first consideration when a fault is discovered that could bring harm to the owners of a product.   To deliberately refuse to acknowledge these facts to protect the profitability and reputation of the manufacturer while the fault continues to harm victims is nothing short of criminal negligence.

Toyota will continue to be pursued in the courts by the relatives of those killed and this will continue for many years, but it is galling to think that the very people who allowed this to happen because they valued company profitability over the lives of their customers remain drawing big salaries - and retaining their positions of power and prestige.

The terms of the settlement with Toyota clearly abandoned the victims rights and the opportunity to send a clear message on the responsibilities that go with management when it comes to safety - and disclosure.  It delivers smug reassurance to the boardrooms of the world that when disaster threatens - money will protect the individual who implements profit protection from the consequences of that action.

Imposing just a fine leaves a lot of dead people consigned to " indifference " !