GM ignition nightmare goes on

2016 looks set to be General Motor's year of reckoning, with the company facing hundreds of claims demanding it pay compensation for the deaths of loved ones and injuries in accidents caused by a flawed ignition switch.

According to evidence provided to lawmakers, engineers at America’s biggest automaker knew of a faulty switch, but rejected a fix that would have cost 90 cents apiece. The faulty switches are linked to the deaths of at least 124 people.

No reserve set aside

The Detroit-based company will learn this year how much more it will have to pay for breaking its promise of GM quality, having already paid more than $2bn for settlements alone. It hasn’t set aside a reserve for the pending lawsuits, Jim Cain, a spokesman, said in an interview. He said GM will deal with the suits one at a time, challenging the plaintiffs to show that the defective switches caused the accidents. Source: Bloomberg BNA

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