The saga continues…
GM vehicle owners will now be able to sue the automaker for its faulty ignition switches after three judges from the New York Court of Appeals invalidated an April 2015 ruling that nullified complaints filed by consumers in connection with accidents that occurred prior to the company’s July 2009 bankruptcy.
Industry analysts told AFP that future compensations will likely exceed $10 billion USD in total.
The initial ruling stipulated that legal liabilities in the case of faulty ignition switches did not apply to the “New GM,” protecting the latter from lawsuits. However, the judges in the Court of Appeals found that “Old GM” had information that confirmed a defect in certain vehicles.
In September of last year, GM agreed to pay $900 million USD to settle civil lawsuits pertaining to the matter. It would also give $1 million to families of the 124 people who died as a direct result of faulty switches, plus $300,000 to each surviving spouse and another $300,000 to each dependent.