Death toll from defective GM switches rises to 121
Jul 6, 2015, 9:25 AM
NEW YORK (AP) — The death toll from faulty ignition switches in General Motors’ small cars has risen by two to 121.
Victims’ families are being offered compensation of at least $1 million each by attorney Kenneth Feinberg, who was hired by GM last year.
Feinberg will also make offers to 251 people who were injured in crashes caused by the switches in the Chevrolet Cobalt and other older cars. That total is up by eight from a week ago.
GM recalled 2.6 million of the cars last year, but acknowledged it knew about the switch problems for more than a decade.
Feinberg’s compensation fund received 4,342 claims by the Jan. 31 deadline. About 90 percent were deemed deficient or ineligible and 76 claims are still under review.
GM paid $200 million to settle claims filed with Feinberg as of March 31.
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