General Motors ignition switch recalls

On February 6, 2014, General Motors (GM) recalled about 800,000 of its small cars due to faulty ignition switches, which could shut off the engine while the vehicle was in motion, thereby preventing the airbags from inflating. The company continued to recall more of its cars over the next several months, resulting in nearly 30 million cars being recalled worldwide and compensation being paid for 124 deaths. The fault had been known to GM for at least a decade prior to the recall being declared. GM faced significant criticism and several lawsuits from the public and consumers for failing to issue a recall sooner in spite of their knowledge of the design flaw. As part of a deferred prosecution agreement, GM agreed to forfeit $900 million to the United States.