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GM to pay $1M penalty for ignition switch accounting trouble

Posted at 3:36 PM, Jan 18, 2017
and last updated 2017-01-18 15:36:05-05

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors Co. has agreed to pay a $1 million penalty for violating accounting rules involving its deadly ignition switch scandal.

The Securities and Exchange Commission says the company settled charges that it had deficient controls that stopped it from properly assessing the scandal’s impact on financial statements.

GM consented to an SEC order without admitting to charges. The SEC says companies have to figure out the likelihood of a recall and estimate the possible loss. The agency found that a 2012 company investigation of the scandal wasn’t brought to the attention of accountants until at least 18 months after it began.

GM recalled 2.6 million small cars worldwide in 2014. The switches are responsible for at least 124 deaths and 275 injuries.