General Motors: Death toll from faulty GM cars reaches 100

Car company has offered compensation to 184 people

GM will recall 13,492 imported Saab and Opel vehicles, and from 29 December another recall will start that involves more than 2.51 million Chevrolet and Buick cars (Getty Images)

The death toll stemming from a faulty ignition switch in some General Motors vehicles has reached 100.

The recent report sharply differs from the company’s claim last year that it was only responsible for 13 deaths, according to the Associated Press. GM has slowly accepted responsibility for more deaths due to the faulty ignition switches, which led to the recall of some 2.6 million cars in 2014.

GM is offering compensation to families of those who died as a result of vehicle malfunction and last year hired attorney Kenneth Feinberg to handle the pay-outs. The company has agreed offers with 184 people, AP reported.

The problems occurred in cars like the Chevrolet Cobalt, where the ignitions switches would move from the “on” position, rendering useless crucial safety features. GM also acknowledged that it knew about the issues for more than 10 years and only recently began trying to remedy the issue.

Mr Feinburg has said that all eligible claims would start at $1 million, and could increase based on the specific circumstances of each incident. As of 31 March, GM has paid $200 million to settle claims and has set aside $550 million to pay more claims.

The company expects to finalise all compensation offers by mid-summer.

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