The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Ford's inaction failed to "prioritize the safety of the American public."

Ford Motor Co will pay a penalty of up to $165 million to the US government for moving too slowly on a recall and failing to give accurate recall information.

Ford (NYSE:F) ran into more issues with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) and was hit with a $165M fine after the regulator found that the company delayed a recall of more than 620K vehicles and gave consumers inaccurate information regarding a faulty rear camera.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has fined Ford Motor Company $165 million over issues with a reverse camera recall. It's the second-largest civil consent penalty in NHTSA history.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday Ford Motor has agreed to a $165 million civil penalty after a government investigation found the automaker failed to recall vehicles with defective rearview cameras in a timely manner.

Ford has agreed to pay a fine that could go up to $165 million after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found the automaker took too long to recall vehicles with faulty rearview cameras and failed to “provide accurate and complete recall information.

The regulator faulted the automaker for not recalling cars with defective rearview cameras quickly enough and for providing incomplete and inaccurate information.

NHTSA is requiring Ford to review all of its recalls in the past three years to ensure they went far enough. (BLOOMBERG)