GM Ignition-Switch Death Claims Rise to 100

Survivors have filed about 100 claims for loved ones killed in one of 2.6 million recalled General Motors cars, according to a spokeswoman for Ken Feinberg, administrator of the automaker’s compensation fund, reported Detroit Free Press.

As of Friday, claims also were filed by 184 people who were injured in one of the cars, which GM recalled beginning last February to replace defective ignition switches, Feinberg spokeswoman Amy Weiss said in an e-mail.

Each claimant must present evidence to establish that the defective ignition switch was the primary cause of the fatality or injury.

Feinberg will determine which claims will be compensated. Claims can be filed through the end of the year.

GM has publicly acknowledged 13 deaths connected to the defect, which can cause ignition switches in up to 2.6 million small cars to turn off when jostled, cutting off power to engines, air bags and other features.

The faulty switches were installed in Chevrolet Cobalts, Saturn Ions, Pontiac G5s, Chevrolet HHRs, Pontiac Solstices and Saturn Skys, mostly from the 2003-07 model years.

GM’s decision not to recall the cars until early this year despite evidence that some employees knew of the problem more than a decade earlier, triggered numerous lawsuits and investigations, including a criminal probe by the U.S. Justice Department.

The compensation fund is unlimited, but GM has estimated that it will cost $400 million-$600 million to settle all eligible claims. That doesn’t include potential payments to victims who choose to sue GM instead of accepting settlements. It doesn’t include any potential government fines.

Feinberg has spelled out extensive criteria for eligibility at GMIgnitionCompensation.com. If he determines that the defect was the “substantial cause” of the accident, he will use actuarial tables and average medical cost data to calculate the size of a payout. Families of people who died will get at least $1 million.