GM faces 125 claims of fatalities due to ignition defects

General Motors Co. has received 125 claims of fatalities related to defective ignition switches in its cars, according to the first batch of applications to a victims' compensation fund.

Kenneth Feinberg, the lawyer hired by GM to determine which requests are valid, said families in 19 of those cases would receive payouts, while the remaining cases were still being vetted. GM has discussed only 13 fatalities connected to the defective switches, which could be inadvertently shut off when jarred, cutting power to the engine and deactivating air bags.

"GM was asking its engineers, 'Can you definitively say ignition switch defects caused the accident?' " Feinberg said in an interview Monday. "Our standard, as you know, is much more liberal. It's easier to apply. It's a legal standard: Was the ignition switch the proximate cause, a substantial likelihood as the cause of the accident?"

Feinberg said he expected the fatality tally to increase as more claims come in, though he would not estimate how much. He also declined to speculate about how much GM could pay out. The automaker, the largest in the United States, said in July it was setting aside from $400 million to $600 million to pay victims.

"We're just now beginning to make the dollar calculations," Feinberg said. "We'll see whether claimant, the victim, or his or her family will accept the money. It's a little early to be putting dollar signs next to eligible claimants. We'll know more about that in the next four to six weeks."

GM will abide by whatever determinations Feinberg makes, said Dave Roman, a spokesman for the Detroit-based automaker.

Figures released Monday show 445 claims to the compensation fund had been made, including 58 involving serious injury and 262 involving hospitalization. Twelve of those injury claims have been ruled valid.

GM's ignition-switch recall began in February and expanded to about 2.6 million cars, including the Chevrolet Cobalt and Saturn Ion.

GM's official tally includes only the drivers, Feinberg said. The compensation fund uses a broader legal definition that makes more people eligible for payment, including the occupants of other vehicles and pedestrians if they were struck by a car with a defective ignition switch, he said.

The first claims were accepted Aug. 1, and Feinberg will take claims through the end of the year. The more clear-cut claims will be processed within 90 days, Feinberg said.