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A fairness hearing for a GM “Shift to Park” lawsuit will occur August 22, but the deadline to file a claim is August 19.
However, the General Motors class action lawsuit includes certain customers in Ohio and Tennessee only.
According to the GM Shift to Park lawsuit, a recall should have been issued for problems allegedly caused by faulty transmission control (shifter) assemblies.
The vehicles can fail to detect when drivers shift into PARK. Once the Shift to Park message appears, a driver cannot shut off the vehicle and can’t lock it either. And the battery can allegedly drain because the vehicle can’t be shut off even though the driver has shifted the transmission into PARK.
Drivers report they can sometimes get around the problem by wiggling the gear shifter, but the class action alleges GM could have fixed the problem entirely by issuing a Shift to Park recall.
The automaker has issued technical service bulletins to dealerships regarding what to do if General Motors customers complain about seeing Shift to Park messages on the instrument panels. But the lawsuit says all the repairs fail to repair the vehicles.
Although General Motors agreed to settle the lawsuit, the automaker denies all the claims and allegations.
GM Shift to Park Lawsuit Settlement
The settlement has been preliminarily approved by the judge with the final fairness hearing scheduled for August 22. But customers should closely read the Shift to Park lawsuit settlement terms because there are conditions that must be met.
There are two classes of customers, one for Ohio and the other for Tennessee. But note how the class action settlement only includes customers who purchased or leased the vehicles brand new. Then note the remaining conditions.
Ohio Shift to Park Class Members
The settlement includes original purchasers and lessees of new 2017-2019 GMC Acadia, 2019 Chevrolet Blazer, 2016-2019 Chevrolet Malibu, 2018-2019 Chevrolet Traverse or 2016-2019 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. And those vehicles must have been leased or purchased new in Ohio.
Additionally, the customer must have sought a repair from a GM dealer about the Shift to Park problem during the original warranty period. And the customer must not have been provided with a silicon-free replacement part.
Tennessee Shift to Park Class Members
The settlement includes original purchasers and lessees of new 2017-2018 GMC Acadia vehicles in Tennessee who sought a repair from a GM dealer regarding the Shift to Park problem during the warranty period. In addition, the Tennessee customer must not have been provided with either a silicon-free replacement shifter assembly or silicon-free shifter control wire harness for free.
You are not a member of the class action lawsuit settlement if those conditions do not apply to you.
For a customer who meets the above conditions, they may receive a $500 cash payment (to be divided equally among any class members who co-own or co-lease a vehicle).
General Motors has some warranty data, but if you don’t appear in the data but meet the conditions, you must submit a valid claim form by August 19, 2025, and provide supporting documentation.
It’s also possible to be reimbursed up to $375 if you paid out-of-pocket for repairs for the Shift to Park problem.
File a claim by August 19 here.
According to the settlement, the General Motors owners (Rilla Jefferson and Mark Riley) who filed the class action lawsuit will receive $10,000 each, and the lawyers representing owners will receive $2,035,000.
The GM Shift to Park lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee: Jefferson v. General Motors, and Riley v. General Motors.
The plaintiffs are represented by Lemberg Law LLC, Lafferty Law Firm, Inc., and The Chandra Law Firm, LLC.