ST. LOUIS — Car manufacturers Kia and Hyundai argued their vehicles are not responsible for skyrocketing rates of theft in ºüÀêÊÓƵ and nationwide weeks after ºüÀêÊÓƵ threatened to sue the companies over a defect.
ºüÀêÊÓƵ city counselor Sheena Hamilton sent a letter to both companies on Aug. 19 threatening to sue if within 30 days they did not make “satisfactory progress†toward addressing the defect that makes some of their cars easier to steal.
Hyundai responded on Sept. 8 and Kia responded on Sept. 12. The 30-day deadline was Sept. 18.
Both companies insisted they’ve taken steps to assist car owners and municipalities by providing free steering wheel locks to local police departments.
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Hyundai also said it will start selling a security computer kit on Oct. 1 that can be installed and targets the methods thieves use to easily start the cars.
“We continue to explore other options to support our customers and local governments about these thefts,†Jason Erb, chief Hyundai legal counsel, wrote in its response to the city. “To that end, we welcome the opportunity to have a productive discussion with your office about other practical measures that can be taken to curb this criminal activity.â€
John Yoon, executive vice president of Kia’s legal department, echoed those sentiments in his letter and agreed with Erb that there is no legal basis for the city’s claim that the companies have created a public nuisance.
Hyundai is the parent company of Kia Motors, but the two operate independently.
ºüÀêÊÓƵ Mayor Tishaura Jones said in a statement city attorneys would meet with the manufacturers to discuss their ideas and determine next steps.
Rates of stolen Kias and Hyundais have exploded in recent months in the ºüÀêÊÓƵ area — a trend that’s also been seen nationally due to a viral TikTok video that shows how to break into and drive off in the South Korean-made vehicles using just a screwdriver and a USB charging cable. The method can be used on those cars because manufacturers did not install engine immobilizers, an electric anti-theft security device.
The ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Police Department reported an approximately 972% increase year to date in reported thefts of those two brands — from 91 in 2021 to 885 in 2022 through Sept. 19.
The city’s police department on Friday said 2,409 Kias and Hyundais have been reported stolen this year through Sept. 21, making up a little over 51% of total reported vehicle thefts.
In late August, city police reported the city averaged 21 Kia and Hyundai theft incidents per day in July and about 23 per day in August.
While the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said engine immobilizers are considered standard equipment on nearly all similar vehicles by other manufacturers, Kia and Hyundai attorneys noted in their letters that the technology is not federally required.
Both manufacturers said they have since made engine immobilizers standard on all vehicles.
“Our earlier studies show that vehicle theft losses plunged after immobilizers were introduced,†said Highway Loss Data Institute Senior Vice President Matt Moore in a recent press release. “Unfortunately, Hyundai and Kia have lagged behind other automakers in making them standard equipment.â€
In addition to ºüÀêÊÓƵ’ possible lawsuit, a Kansas City-area law firm has already filed suits against the car companies in several states, and a federal class action lawsuit has been filed in Iowa,