General Motors ignition flaw kills 19 people in months…to pay $600million in compensation

A compensation expert, Kenneth Feinberg, hired by General Motors has said that the death toll tied to faulty ignition switches in the auto company’s small cars has risen to 19, with the number likely to climb.

Speaking on Monday, Feinberg said he has determined that 19 wrongful death claims are eligible for payments from GM. General Motors' estimate of deaths has stood at 13 for months, although the automaker acknowledged the possibility of a higher count.

Huffington Post reports that Feinberg received 125 death claims due to the faulty switches in older-model small cars such as the Chevrolet Cobalt. The rest remain under review or require further documentation.

"The public report is simply reporting on those eligible to date," Feinberg spokeswoman Camille Biros said in an email. "There will certainly be others."


GM has admitted knowing about the ignition switch problem for more than a decade. Yet it didn't begin recalling the switches in 2.6 million small cars until earlier this year. The automaker hired Feinberg to compensate victims of crashes caused by the switches, and Feinberg has said GM has not limited the total amount he can pay. Some lawmakers have estimated the death toll is close to 100.

The car company has estimated the cost of compensating victims at $400 million, but admits that it could rise to $600 million.

The faulty ignition switches can slip out of the "run" position into "accessory" or "off," cutting off power to the engine. That can knock out power steering or brakes and disable the air bags if there's a crash.