General Motors and battery supplier LG have agreed to provide owners of certain recalled Chevy Bolt electric cars $1,400 each to settle a class action lawsuit.
“Bolt owners who received a battery replacement or who have installed the latest advanced diagnostic software may qualify for compensation,” the company said in a statement.
About the Bolt and Its Recalls
The Chevy Bolt EV is a small hatchback electric vehicle (EV) first sold for the 2017 model year. It lasted two generations and stopped being made after the 2023 model year, though Chevrolet is expected to bring the name back on a new model soon.
Chevy updated its design with new styling and upgraded cabin tech for the 2022 model year and introduced a slightly longer version with added cargo and rear-seat legroom, the Bolt EUV.
Both were subject to an escalating series of recalls due to a series of fires blamed on their batteries. We’re unaware of any injuries related to Bolt battery fires. But fire marshals say some fires spread to structures where cars had been parked.
Chevrolet and LG made several attempts to diagnose and fix the problem. That meant some Bolt owners brought their cars in for recall repairs more than once, none of which solved the problem. The company ultimately replaced many Bolt batteries, which appears to have worked.
We’re unaware of any fires blamed on replaced batteries.
But full battery replacements are expensive — GM’s earnings suffered an $800 million hit last year due to the issue.
Different Battery Than Other GM EVs
The Bolt was Chevy’s first pure electric car since the EV1 of “Who Killed The Electric Car?” fame. Despite publicity from the fires, the Bolt was the best-selling EV built by someone other than Tesla last year.
But it uses a unique battery chemistry GM never used in another car. The company builds many EVs today using a different battery called Ultium. Ultium batteries have not seen an unusual number of fire reports. GM plans to bring the Bolt name back on an Ultium-based EV soon.
Some Owners Already Have Their $1,400
Reuters first reported the news, citing documents filed in a U.S. court. But the dollar amount of the settlement has been expected for months. GM began voluntarily offering the compensation to owners last fall while the lawsuit was still being heard.
But some owners likely held out, waiting to see if the lawsuit settlement would be more generous. The final settlement appears largely the same as that voluntary offer.
