AG seeks quicker response to vehicle theft `crisis'
California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 22 other states' attorneys general on Monday condemned Hyundai Motor Co. and subsidiary Kia America, calling for the South Korean automakers to take more urgent action to address security vulnerabilities that have made their vehicles highly susceptible to theft.
Millions of Hyundai and Kia vehicles of model years 2011 through 2022 lack antitheft devices known as engine immobilizers.
As prospective thieves have become increasingly aware of the security problem and spread that knowledge using social media platforms, thefts of Hyundai and Kia vehicles have soared nationwide and within California.
Last year, Hyundai and Kia vehicles made up about 20% of all vehicles reported stolen in Los Angeles, up from 13% in 2021, Bonta's office said in a news release. In Berkeley, they have made up 38% of thefts since December
2022.
“The thefts have even gone viral, with videos on social media showing how to hot-wire these vehicles and challenging others to steal them,” the news release said, referring to a viral TikTok “challenge.”
“Major insurance companies are now refusing to insure the Hyundai and Kia models most susceptible to theft,” Bonta's office wrote. Progressive and State Farm reportedly stopped providing new policies for certain models of Kia and Hyundai earlier this year.
The coalition of attorneys general sent a letter to the firms which were sued last week by the city of San Diego, also over the security issues urging Hyundai and Kia to accelerate a software upgrade that Bonta's office said won't be available for most affected drivers until June.
“Hyundai and Kia made a decision to forgo a standard safety feature that would help protect owners' investments, and now their customers are paying the price,” Bonta said in a prepared
statement. “It's time for Hyundai and Kia to take responsibility for their poor decision which is hurting American families and putting public safety at risk. They must remedy this decision, now.”
Attorneys general in the letter called the growing wave of thefts a “crisis.”
“The surge in thefts of these vulnerable vehicles
has been truly shocking,” they wrote.
The states' top law enforcement officials also called on the companies to provide free anti-theft measures to owners whose 2011 to 2022 model vehicles cannot support the upgrade.
Hyundai and Kia have offered glass-break security for $170 to vehicle owners, according to Bonta's news release, but the costs must be paid out-of-pocket by vehicle owners.
“We thank the Attorneys General for the opportunity to let them know what we have done and will continue to do to combat this rise in car theft and the role social media has played in encouraging it,” Irvine-based Kia America said in a statement responding to the letter. “We are committed to working with these officials and with law enforcement agencies at the state and local level to ensure vehicle security.”
Hyundai Motor America, based in Fountain Valley, in a statement said it is “committed to the quality and integrity of our products and plans to continue supporting the communities affected by this theft issue.”
Hyundai also said it has “initiated a program to begin reimbursement to eligible customers for their purchase of steering wheel locks.”
Kia has already contacted more than 1.1 million owners and lessees to advise them of the software upgrade, according to its statement, and is scheduled to contact over 2 million more by the end of this month. Hyundai has contacted more than 1 million owners and lessees with information on the upgrade, the company said.
Both companies said they have also provided tens of thousands of free steering wheel locks to law enforcement agencies nationwide, which have distributed them in turn to Hyundai and Kia drivers.
The anti-theft software upgrades, which will be free to vehicle owners, were announced last month and will occur in phases, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“The effort is in response to a TikTok social media challenge that has spread nationwide and has resulted in at least 14 reported crashes and eight fatalities,” the NHTSA said in a Feb. 14 news release.