It was only in November 2014 that Japanese car-manufacturing giant Honda Motors admitted that it didn't report 1,729 complaints of deaths and injuries involving its vehicles in the U.S. The data, covering 11 years from 2003 to 2014, was supposed to be submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

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Honda learned about the omission in 2011, but it let three years pass before it finally submitted the report, which merited the company a US$70 million fine by the Obama administration, reports Fox News.

Also not reported were warranty claims for the same 11-year period. The two breaches were fined US$35 each, which is the largest amount the NHTSA could impose.

NHTSA Executive Director Clarence Ditlow said the US$70 million fine is actually too low. He said Honda must waive all statues of limitations at state and federal levels over the potential recalls or lawsuits that may arise caused by the defective parts that it hid for 11 years as unreported claims.

The mandatory reporting requirement of death and injury complaints aims to identify potential safety defects that could lead to a recall as part of NHTSA's early warning system.

Among the complaints were non-functioning air bags and defective parts. Since 2008, Honda has recalled over 5 million cars in the U.S. because of the life-threatening defect of its air bags made in Takata, Japan. Its air bag inflators are reported to rupture after a crash, injuring the motorist and passengers with metal shards.

Honda said it failed to report the complaints because of data entry mistakes, computer coding problems, wrong interpretation of rules and other errors in warranty and property damage claims, explained Honda North America Executive Vice President Rick Schostek.

"What we cannot tolerate and will not tolerate is an automaker failing to report to us any recall issues," Fox News quotes Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.

TagsHonda, automaker