City Attorney Ann Davison filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday against two major car manufacturers for cutting corners and costs at the expense of customers.
According to Davison's office, the lawsuit against Kia and Hyundai stems from "their failure to install anti-theft technology in some vehicles which hav contributed to an exponential increase" in thefts of the two manufacturers' cars in Seattle and other regions.
The frequent thefts have been highlighted as trends on TikTok and other social media platforms, where people describe how to steal a vehicle in minutes with a screwdriver and USB charger. A group known online as the "Kia Boyz" steals Kia and Hyundai vehicles and then posts about the thefts on social media, challenging others to do the same.
“When social media postings of how to steal them came out, that really was the catapult of that and those numbers started to go up very dramatically," said Davison.
Davison's office said from 2021 to 2022, thefts of Kia and Hyundai cars in Seattle increased by 363% and 503%, respectively. The Seattle Police Department noted a 620% increase in reports of stolen Hyundais and Kias over the previous July, according to Davison's office.
"Though Kia and Hyundai are aware of the public safety concerns arising from the huge spike in theft of their vehicles, they have not taken meaningful steps to address the problem," Davison said in a statement. "As a result, our police force has had to tackle a huge rise in vehicle theft and related problems with already stretched resources. Now Seattle taxpayers must shoulder the burden of the increase in theft. Kia and Hyundai need to take responsibility for the public safety hazard that they created.”
Davison's press release mentioned a recent incident in which a group of teens was arrested after robbing a man in Ballard and fleeing to Federal Way in two stolen vehicles.
“Now that people know how easy it is to steal Hyundais and Kias, the Seattle Police Department has noticed a huge increase in the theft of these models,” Seattle Chief of Police Adrian Diaz said. “From 48 reported thefts of Hyundais and Kias in August to 197 in December. Sixty-four percent of those vehicles were later recovered within city limits, which shows they’re most likely being taken for short periods of time, often in order to commit other crimes. To protect the hard-earned property of Seattle residents, car makers need to take this problem seriously and do all they can to prevent these thefts.”
Kia issued the following statement in response to the lawsuit:
“Kia remains concerned that criminal actors are targeting certain Kia cars with a steel key and “turn-to-start” ignition systems. While no car can be made completely theft-proof, Kia continues to make steering wheel locks available to customers through interested local law enforcement agencies, subject to available supply, at no cost to concerned owners of these vehicles.”
Hyundai also issued a statement in response to the lawsuit:
“Hyundai believes this lawsuit is improper and unnecessary. In response to increasing thefts targeting our vehicles without push-button ignitions and immobilizing anti-theft devices in the United States, Hyundai Motor America has made engine immobilizers standard on all vehicles produced as of November 2021. Additionally, Hyundai has taken a series of actions to deter thefts of affected vehicles, including an upcoming software update scheduled to be available beginning next month and provided at no cost to customers.”
Kristen Moore had her Hyundai stolen, she noticed it was gone Tuesday morning. She told KOMO she was shocked to hear this is happening more often. “I was a little surprised and I always lock my car, so there was also no glass on the ground or anything from a broken window," she said.
Moore said she’s not sure she’ll go back to Hyundai unless there’s more safety measures put in place. “Just having it have the most security, knowing that when you’re buying this car, it’s going to be really hard to steal," she added.
The city of Tacoma issued a press release last week regarding the uptick in vehicle thefts of Hyundais and Kias.
From Jan. 1-15, 348 vehicles were stolen in Tacoma, 48% of which were Hyundais and Kias, according to the release. During those same dates in 2022, only 5% of the 207 vehicles stolen were Hyundais or Kias.
Tacoma said the models most at risk for theft are 2011-2021 Kias and 2015-2021 Hyundais which require a key to turn on the ignition.
Karina Vargas contributed to this report.