Leverkusen, Germany - Bayer has agreed to settle US charges by paying 97.5 million dollars without an admission of guilt, the German chemicals and pharmaceuticals group said Tuesday.

The US Department of Justice had brought proceedings against the company over its incentives for mail-order sales from 1998 to 2003 of glucose meters, which are used by diabetics to test themselves several times a day.

In an announcement in Leverkusen, Germany, Bayer said it had chosen to pay a settlement without acknowledging liability so as to avoid "the time, uncertainty and expense of litigation."

It is to enter a "corporate integrity agreement" with the US government and employees were receiving regular training to promote understanding and compliance. (dpa)