There are now 97 fatalities linked to General Motors’ defective ignition switches.
Along with the seven additional fatalities, The Detroit News says GM’s ignition switch compensation fund has now approved 16 new injury claims, bringing the total to 179. Of those claims, 12 are for serious injuries.
Those affected by the recall had until Jan. 31 of this year to submit a claim. A total of 4,342 have been submitted so far, while 669 are still pending approval. Fund administrator Camille Biros says it could take until “very late spring” to rule on all the claims, while attorney Kenneth Feinberg has given the process a six-month timeline since the fund’s Jan. 31 deadline.
GM will pay out roughly US$1 million per claim and expects the fund to complete its review by Sept. 30. So far, 70 per cent of ignition switches have been reportedly fixed.
Last year, GM said 13 deaths were linked to the 2.6 million small cars affected, including the Chevrolet Cobalt, Pontiac Pursuit and Saturn Ion. In affected vehicles, the ignition switch could shut off the engine, completely disabling the car’s power steering and airbags as a result.
