Fiat hit with $105m fine over Jeep recall

The Fiat fine eclipses a previous record of $70m against Honda in January

The 2014 Jeep Cherokee undergoes assembly at the Chrysler Toledo North Assembly Plant Jeep May 7, 2014 (Getty) (Getty)

Fiat Chrysler has been hit with a record $105 million fine for the way that it handled a car recall affecting millions of vehicles.

The Italian car maker has signed an agreement with the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration agreeing to buy back hundreds of thousands of vehicles, including more than one million Jeeps, whose owners can trade their cars in or get them repaired. The unprecedented deal is unprecedented is accompanied by an agreement to allow an independent monitor to audit Fiat’s recall over the next three years.

The Fiat fine sets a record for the NHTSA, eclipsing the previous record of $70 million imposed against Honda in January for failing to report death and injury.

"Fiat Chrysler's pattern of poor performance put millions of its customers and the driving public at risk," Mark Rosekin, administrator of the NHTSA, said in a statement. "This action will provide relief to owners of defective vehicles, will help improve recall performance throughout the auto industry, and gives Fiat Chrysler the opportunity to embrace a proactive safety culture."

Fiat Chrysler's US unit said it accepted the consequences of the agreement with "renewed resolve to improve our handling of recalls and re-establish the trust our customers place in us."

The fines include $70 million in cash and an agreement to spend $20 million improving its recall process. If it commits any further violations, it can be fined an additional $15 million, under the terms.

On Friday, Fiat recalled over 1.4 million vehicles over hacking fears.

Additional reporting by Reuters