Graco Agrees To Pay $10 Million Following NHTSA Probe Into Child Seats Recall

Graco Children's Products, a subsidiary of Newell Rubbermaid , announced it will spend $10 million as part of an agreement it reached with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in connection with the company's failure to comply with procedures regarding the reporting of consumer complaint. Under terms of the agreement, Graco will pay a $3 million fine and invest $7 million in child passenger safety programs and education. "We have worked closely with NHTSA throughout this process and regret that we fell short of NHTSA's expectations for data collection and reporting procedures," said Graco President Laurel Hurd. The agreement follows an investigation launched by the NHTSA in December into the timeliness of Graco's reporting of a safety defect in child seats, which led to what the NHTSA called the largest recall of of child seats in U.S. history. Newell Rubbermaid's stock, which was inactive in premarket trade, has gained 5.3% in the past three months, while the S&P 500 has edged up 0.9%.