With the deadline to file a claim with GM’s compensation program coming up in 3 days, the program’s administrator announces that he has approved 50 death claims and 75 injury claims so far. Program administrator, Kenneth Feinberg, reported that he is currently reviewing or awaiting documents on another 230 death claims and 2,327 injury claims. So far, he has rejected 58 death claims and 328 injury claims.
The fund was established to compensate the families of anyone who was injured or killed in an accident caused by a defective ignition switch. The company created the fund after feeling the heat from safety advocate groups over its poor handling of the ignition switch recall.
GM reportedly knew about the safety issue for more than ten years but chose not to recall the affected vehicles (Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars) until last year. Some 2.6 million popular vehicles were recalled worldwide for a problem that was causing the switches to slip out of the “on” position, knock the power steering out and disable the airbags.
According to GM, it set aside $400 million last year for the recall, but has now conceded that it may grow to $600 million. Early on in the recall, GM took responsibility for 13 deaths, arguing that it would accept responsibility only for the deaths of people who were killed in front-end accidents involving a faulty ignition switch if they were sitting in the front seats of GM vehicles.
Since the compensation program was introduced, Feinberg has changed the formula and is now taking responsibility for anyone killed in a crash involving a defective ignition switch, no matter what seat they were sitting in at the time of the crash.
For more information about the GM ignition switch recall or to find out if you qualify to file an individual lawsuit against GM, contact the nationally acclaimed product liability lawyers of the Flood Law Group LLP.
NOTE: Anyone who accepts a payout through the compensation program gives up his or her right to file a lawsuit against GM.
