GM Continues To Recall Defective Vehicles As Expected Death Toll Rises

The newest round of General Motors recalls announced on Friday, June 6 includes several newer GM vehicles with newly-disclosed safety defects, including 2014 and 2015 large Sports Utility Vehicles and trucks, and an airbag defect present in more than 30,000 2012 Buick Verano cars.

The voluntary recalls continue to rise as controversy swirls regarding defective ignition switches present in more than 2 million previously recalled vehicles, including the Chevrolet Cobalt and Saturn Ion.  The faulty ignition switches can inadvertently move to the “accessory” position during driving, causing the car to stall and potentially disabling critical electrical safety systems like power steering, power brakes, and airbags.

Mounting evidence appears to demonstrate that GM was aware of these defects as far back as 2002 when an engineer sent an email saying he was “tired of the switch from hell.”  A new 276-page report—conducted by U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas—describes in detail how GM’s in-house legal counsel failed to sound alarms of the defects for more than seven years.  GM’s new CEO Mary Barra publicly called the report “brutally tough and deeply troubling.”

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While GM had admitted that 13 deaths can be attributed to its defective ignition switches, GM has stated as recently as June 5 that the real number may be higher. David Friedman, acting head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, has stated he believes the number is higher, while other experts have predicted that the number of deaths caused by defective ignition switches could be greater than 100.

The attorneys at Cory Watson Attorneys are experienced with cases of defective automobiles and the danger they pose; Cory Watson lawyers have been retained to represent GM owners of recently recalled vehicles.