NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Sears Roebuck and Co. has agreed to pay a $500,000 civil penalty for failing to report a defect in certain riding lawn mowers, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Friday.

The Craftsman model lawn mover contained a defective fuel tank.

As part of the settlement, Sears denied that it violated any reporting requirements of the Consumer Product Safety Act, the CPSC said.

The CPSC said Sears received about 1,600 reports of fuel leakage and fuel tank cracking between April 1999 and September 2001 with certain models of Craftsman rear-engine riding lawn mowers. The commission said Sears violated regulations by failing to report the defect.

There were no injuries or deaths from the problems, the commission said.

Lawrenceburg, Tenn.-based Murray Inc. manufactured 36,000 rear-engine riding mowers for Sears under the Craftsman label. Murray recalled the lawn mowers in March 2003 and paid a $375,000 civil penalty in September of that year for filing a late report on the lawn mowers.

According to federal law, manufacturers, distributors and retailers are required to report to the CPSC within 24 hours after obtaining information that reasonably supports the conclusion that a product violates a federal safety standard or contains a defect that potentially poses a risk of serious injury or even death.

Shares of Sears (Research) gained 76 cents to $34.65 Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange.