City suing Hyundai, Kia over car thefts

Carmakers have attributed thefts to targeting of vehicle models that do not have engine immobilizers

The City of Milwaukee will be suing automakers Kia and Hyundai over the damage inflicted by thefts of their vehicles, Milwaukee leaders announced Wednesday.

“It is my hope that not only do we curb the thefts but that the City of Milwaukee recovers some of the damages for police, fire, (Department of Public Works) and any other costs that we’ve had to incur as a result of the negligence of Kia and Hyundai,” Ald. Milele Coggs said at a news conference Wednesday in front of the federal courthouse in downtown Milwaukee.

Coggs said about two years ago she and Ald. Khalif Rainey started to highlight the automobile thefts and began asking the City Attorney’s Office to look at possible legal remedies.

Milwaukee City Attorney Tearman Spencer described the city as “ground zero” for the thefts that have hit cities across the nation. He said the city would be filing the lawsuit Wednesday. The city does not have a specific sum it is currently seeking in damages, he said.

The move comes a day after the city’s Common Council approved legislation that authorizes Spencer to hire outside counsel to pursue “all potential remedies for damages suffered by the City of Milwaukee as a result of the nuisance levels of automobile thefts.”

Mayor Cavalier Johnson signed the legislation the same day as the council vote.

Milwaukee has seen car thefts spike in recent years, reaching a record of 10,487 in 2021, the bulk of which were Kias and Hyundais. Last year, there were 8,097 car thefts in the city. Yearto-date in 2023, the thefts are down about 30%, according to data that police report online.

The carmakers have attributed the thefts to the targeting of Kia and Hyundai models that do not have engine immobilizers, a feature that makes it more difficult to start the vehicle without a key — but they argue the vehicles were built in compliance with federal standards.

Last month, Kia and Hyundai announced a theft-deterrent software update for their vehicles that lack an engine immobilizer, though Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and others this week contended that the automakers have not done nearly enough.

In a statement, Kia said it was

“Lawsuits against Kia by municipalities are without merit ...” Excerpt from statement from Kia

MIKE DE SISTI / MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL City Attorney Tearman Spencer, center, speaks alongside Ald. Milele Coggs, left, and deputy city attorney Robin Pederson outside the federal courthouse in Milwaukee on Wednesday.