Investigation Continues in GM Ignition Switch Recall
Most of the time, a car accident happens because of a driver’s negligence. However, there are cases where the fault does not lie with the drivers but with the vehicles. When there is a manufacturing defect in a vehicle that goes unnoticed, tragedies can happen on a national scale. One such defect may have been caught in GM vehicles.
Plaintiffs are asking a federal judge for an emergency injunction on more than 2 million GM vehicles that may have a faulty ignition switch. The judge has asked for more time to review the evidence, but here are the arguments. The ignition switch is said to move from the run position to the accessory position under unknown circumstances. When this happens, the car will lose power in certain components, notably the power steering, the power brakes, and the airbags.
GM has admitted that they’ve known about the faulty switches for at least a decade, but have failed to take action until now. They issued a recall in February, but the plaintiffs want GM to send a message out to all owners telling them to not drive the affected cars until they are repaired. Already the switches have been linked with 13 deaths, though families affected say there could be many more cases.
GM has testified before a Senate subcommittee that the cars are safe to drive if proper precautions are taken. The cars affected are smaller models, notably Saturn Ions and Chevrolet Cobalts though other models are affected as well.
Please be safe on the roads, and check your car manufacturer’s websites for any information about recalls. If you think faulty equipment caused you to get injured in an accident, get help by calling our offices.