The government will consider introducing punitive damages against manufacturers after a spate of reports of BMW vehicles catching fire in South Korea. 

According to the government on Tuesday, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will discuss the matter with the Fair Trade Commission.

The ministry plans to decide within this month how to revise related laws to adopt the new system through the discussions.  

A ministry official said that the government made the decision as the current auto recall system revealed many problems in the wake of BMW's recent recall of some 106-thousand vehicles.  

Rep. Park Soon-ja of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, who chairs the National Assembly’s Land Infrastructure and Transport Committee, also said on Monday that she will actively consider introducing punitive damages against automakers. 

Punitive damages, also known as exemplary damages, are awarded to a plaintiff in excess of actual compensatory damages in order to punish the defendant for a reckless or willful act.