General Motors
Flagged · AvoidAmerican automaker behind Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, and Cadillac, with a long record of safety cover-ups and regulatory deception.
Last updated June 11, 2026
↓ Skip to 6 ethical alternativesReasons to avoid
Issues span:PrivacyLaborTaxEnvironmentConsumer
- In May 2026, California regulators announced a record $12.75 million CCPA settlement with General Motors over its OnStar connected vehicle service, which sold the precise location data, driving behavior, and personal information of hundreds of thousands of California drivers to data brokers, allegedly without meaningful consent and in violation of the company's own privacy representations. GM made approximately $20 million from the unlawful sales between 2020 and 2024.
- GM concealed a deadly ignition switch defect for over a decade. The flaw — which could cut engine power and disable airbags during a crash — was linked to at least 124 deaths. GM knew about the problem as early as 2004 but suppressed it until a 2014 recall. The company paid a $900 million DOJ fine and over $2.6 billion in total penalties and settlements.
- GM's self-driving subsidiary Cruise covered up a 2023 pedestrian crash in San Francisco in which its robotaxi dragged a woman 20 feet after striking her. Cruise omitted the dragging from two mandatory federal crash reports. The company paid $1.5 million to NHTSA, entered a deferred prosecution agreement with the DOJ for submitting a false report, and settled with the victim for at least $8 million.
- GM spent $20 million on lobbying in 2025 — more than almost any other U.S. company — to gut federal and state vehicle emissions and fuel efficiency rules, actively undermining climate policy and its own stated EV goals.
- NHTSA recalled nearly 600,000 GM trucks and SUVs in 2025 after the agency logged over 1,100 reports of catastrophic 6.2L V8 engine failures that could cause sudden loss of power while driving. NHTSA has since escalated its investigation after owners reported continued engine failures even after the recall repair.
- GM has no zero-deforestation policy and scored only 20 out of 100 on Rainforest Foundation Norway's benchmark for mitigating deforestation risk — the lowest tier. The company's leather and battery mineral supply chains have been linked to Amazon cattle farming and Southeast Asian habitat destruction.
- Federal regulators found that approximately 5.9 million GM trucks and SUVs from the 2012 through 2018 model years emitted over 10% more carbon dioxide on average than the company had reported in its compliance filings. GM agreed in July 2024 to pay $146 million in penalties and forfeit 50 million metric tons of greenhouse gas credits, which was one of the largest emissions enforcement actions against a U.S. automaker.
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Common Questions
- Is General Motors ethical?
- GM concealed a deadly ignition switch defect for over a decade that was linked to at least 124 deaths, paying $900 million to the DOJ and over $2.6 billion in total penalties. GM's self-driving subsidiary Cruise also omitted a pedestrian dragging from two mandatory federal crash reports in 2023, resulting in a deferred prosecution agreement and at least an $8 million settlement with the victim.
- Why should I avoid General Motors?
- GM spent $20 million on lobbying in 2025 to gut federal vehicle emissions and fuel efficiency rules while publicly touting its EV goals. NHTSA recalled nearly 600,000 GM trucks and SUVs in 2025 after over 1,100 reports of catastrophic engine failures causing sudden loss of power, and the agency later escalated its investigation after failures continued even after the recall repair.
- What are the best ethical alternatives to General Motors?
- Subaru and Honda consistently outperform GM brands on long-term reliability with fewer safety cover-ups. Rivian makes American electric trucks and SUVs built as EVs from the ground up. Buying a used vehicle from Carmax or a local used dealership is the most sustainable and cost-effective alternative.