The ignition switch fiasco of General Motors is drawing to a close with the announcement that individual compensation packages are already being handed out.
The GM Compensation Claims Resolution Facility has been responsible for providing compensation to those who submitted claims to the facility after 124 people were killed due to faulty ignition switches across a number of cars from General Motors.
Of the 4,343 claims of injuries and fatalities reported to the resolution facility, GM determined that 399 were eligible for compensation.
In total, just over $594.5 million worth of compensation has been awarded to those cases, averaging about $1.5 million each. However, individual compensation packages varied depending on the harm caused to the person(s) affected by the ignition switch.
Of the 399 eligible cases, 90 per cent of the compensation offers have been accepted, so GM cannot be sued for this issue at a later date. Details have yet to be revealed about what is happening with the remaining 10 per cent.
Interestingly, General Motors discovered that in 61 per cent of the eligible cases, negligence on the part of the driver also contributed to the incidents. These factors included falling asleep while driving, driving recklessly, not wearing a seat belt, speeding or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
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