Trantolo & Trantolo’s team of lawyers represents plaintiffs in a wide range of personal injury cases, including motor vehicle accidents and product liability. A recent recall from General Motors falls within both fields.
Announced nearly two weeks ago, GM recalled the Chevy Cobalt and other vehicles from its line over defective ignition switches. Although the Cobalt is no longer in production, this and other GM cars amount to over 700,000 vehicles with this potentially-fatal defect.
Because of an ignition switch that didn’t deploy, accidents killed six people over the past eight years. However, a CBS News investigation revealed that GM didn’t find out about the defect recently; the American car manufacturer knew about it a decade ago and further didn’t make an effort to correct it even after the first fatal accident happened in 2006.
Accident reports, according to CBS News, show that the drivers were not intoxicated and that the weather didn’t play a factor. Rather, the airbag did not deploy during the accident, as the ignition switch remained the accessory position, or essentially turned off, preventing power steering and braking from occurring.
Lawyers currently handling this group of cases against GM allege the manufacturer had been aware of the defect, even to the point of issuing a service bulletin to employees about it in 2005. The statement read: “[T]here is potential for the driver to inadvertently turn off the ignition….the concern is more likely to occur if the driver is short and has a large and or heavy key chain.”
In response, General Motors claims the low accident rate didn’t warrant a recall.
As of now, there appears to be no update regarding what current Cobalt drivers need to do. In instances like this, a part or function may need to be replaced after a recall.
Trantolo & Trantolo’s team handles product liability cases across a wide range of industries, from defective items on the market to dangerous medications. All products, however, failed to be modified or recalled in time to prevent deaths or life-changing injuries from occurring.
If you or a loved one experienced an accident because of a General Motors vehicle with the above defect, gather information to support your claim, and our Connecticut team can be of assistance moving forward.
