GM Compensation Expert Extends Claims Deadline by One Month

GM attorney Kenneth Feinberg announced Sunday night that the deadline to file a claim against the company for damages resulting from faulty ignition switches has been extended until Jan. 31, 2015. Feinberg said in a statement that the extension is being done out of an abundance of caution, even though many efforts have been made to reach owners of 2.6 million Chevrolet Cobalts, Saturn Ions and other small cars that have been recalled due to the defective switches. He said notices about the compensation fund have been sent to nearly 4.5 million current and prior owners of the cars. GM said last week that it has reached the family of Connecticut mother Jean Averill, who died when her Ion crashed into a tree. Averill, 66, of Washington, Connecticut, was one of 13 people that GM originally thought had died in crashes caused by the faulty switches. Averill's family didn't know that GM attributed her death to the ignition switch until told by a reporter from The New York Times earlier this month. GM's insurance company denied the family's claim for damages in 2004. Feinberg has determined that 32 families should be compensated thus far.