Toyota Industries Pays $299.5 Million to Settle Forklift Emissions Violations

Japanese company Toyota Industries, the industrial equipment manufacturing entity within the Toyota Group and not the automotive manufacturing arm, announced reaching a $299.5 million settlement with the U.S. government to resolve allegations that its diesel-powered forklifts produced between 2007 and 2021 failed to meet federal emissions standards.

U.S. government agencies allege that the affected vehicles were equipped with emissions control systems that did not function as efficiently as required under actual operating conditions in warehouses and factories, resulting in actual air pollution exceeding legally allowable limits over many years.

This case falls within a broader wave of legal actions against automotive and heavy equipment companies accused of manipulating emissions data or using malicious defeat devices, following the "Dieselgate" scandal that shook Volkswagen in 2015 and reshaped regulatory oversight standards for the industry.

Toyota Industries expressed its readiness to cooperate with regulatory bodies and implement corrective measures to ensure future compliance. Observers believe that this settlement will encourage the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to intensify its oversight of the industrial equipment sector, which has historically been subject to less scrutiny compared to personal passenger vehicles.

What do these terms mean?

Emissions Standards: Legal limits imposed by government agencies on the amount of pollutants that a vehicle or industrial machine can release into the air.

Forklift: An industrial vehicle equipped with two metal arms for lifting heavy loads, widely used in warehouses, factories, and shipping ports.

Dieselgate: The scandal revealed in 2015 in which Volkswagen programmed its diesel engines to reduce emissions only during testing, leading to fines exceeding $30 billion.