According to the first batch of applications to a victims compensation fund, a total of 125 claims of fatalities related to defective ignition switches have been received so far by General Motors, the largest auto maker in the U.S. The compensation expert hired by GM to vet which applications were valid – Kenneth Feinberg – revealed that 19 families will be compensated, and the remaining cases are still being examined.
General Motors made an official statement, which was cited by the Wall Street Journal: “We have previously said that Ken Feinberg and his team will independently determine the final number of eligible individuals, so we accept their determinations for the compensation program. What is most important is that we are doing the right thing for those who lost loved ones and for those who suffered physical injury.”
The number of families, to which General Motors finally agreed to pay out injuries coverage, is larger than the initially discussed 13 fatalities related to the faulty ignition switches, which had been previously acknowledged by the car manufacturer. The company started accepting compensation claims on August 1st 2014.
Attorney Kenneth Feinberg, who was hired by General Motors to determine the validity of the requests said in an interview for Bloomberg: “GM was asking its engineers can you definitively say ignition switch defects caused the accident. Our standard, as you know, is much more liberal. It’s easier to apply. It’s a legal standard, was the ignition switch the proximate cause, a substantial likelihood as the cause of the accident.”
A total of 13 death cases in the U.S. and Canada had been previously admitted by General Motors and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The fatality tally was said by Mr. Feinberg to increase as more requests are filed, but he could not specify exactly how high it is.
GMs attorney also refused to guess how much the auto manufacturer could pay out. In July 2014 the company itself said that funds in the range from $400 million to $600 million were being set aside for victims compensations.
General Motors Co. rose by 1.08% on Monday in New York to close at $33.63 per share, marking a one-year change of -6.74%. The car manufacturer is valued at $53.39 billion. According to CNN Money, the 15 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for General Motors Co. have a median target of $45.00, with a high estimate of $52.00 and a low estimate of $29.00. The median estimate represents a +33.81% increase from the last price of $33.63.
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