BALTIMORE — Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown is demanding the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) issue a recall of Hyundai and Kia vehicles manufactured between 2011 and 2022.
In a letter sent to NHSTA, Brown calls out the car manufacturers continued failure to take adequate steps to address the alarming rate of thefts of their vehicles.
Brown joined a coalition of 18 states calling for the federal recall, including the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.
Videos posted online show how to steal certain Kia and Hyundai vehicles using a USB charging cord, which has led to a drastic increase in the number of motor vehicle thefts across the country.
The letter sent to NHSTA calls on the federal government to step in, saying the out-of-date systems pose an unreasonable risk to public safety, which Hyundai and Kia have "failed to address."
“Car manufacturers failing to adequately address serious public safety concerns is completely unacceptable,” said Attorney General Brown. “There is a problem with these particular Hyundai and Kia vehicles that puts lives at risk and has even resulted in multiple deaths. These companies must be held responsible for fixing the safety problem without putting the burden to do so on the cars’ owners.”
Hyundai and Kia vehicles manufactured between 2011 and 2022 do not include anti-theft devices, which Browns said are standard in most other new cars made during the same time, including some of the same Hyundai and Kia models sold in Canada and Europe.
“Even if the vehicle is stolen while the owner is safely away from their car, the disruption to their quality of life is real,” said Attorney General Brown. “The time lost from work, the money spent to replace their vehicle or fix damages, even the stress of trying to find alternate transportation to get to work, school, appointments, it is all a load these owners should not have to bear, nor endure.”
Brown claims police and first responders have felt the burden as the cars are stolen at an alarming rate.
"They’ve increased patrols and time spent responding to the thefts, distributed anti-theft devices such as steering wheels locks, and been very vocal in alerting the public to this dangerous trend," a release from the Maryland attorney general reads. "It has been a losing battle because social media is inundated with videos illustrating how to hotwire these vehicles and challenging others to steal them."
In February, Kia and Hyundai announced they had created new anti-theft software designed to help owners keep their cars safe. In addition to the free software, customers will be given a sticker alerting would-be thieves that the vehicle is equipped with anti-theft protection. The stickers will be sent out as the software updates are rolled out.
Kia and Hyundai owners who are interested in getting the updated software for free will need to contact Hyundai toll-free at 800-633-5151 or Kia toll-free at 800-333-4542.
The coalition of 18 state's attorney generals says that software is not enough as the upgrade will not be available for many affected vehicles until June and the upgrade can't even be installed in some 2011-2022 models. Those who cannot receive the upgrade will simply be given a free steering wheel lock, which Brown and other AGs say does not address the underlying ignition system flaw that makes the vehicles vulnerable in the first place.
The letter urges NHTSA to issue a recall due to the following:
- The vehicles violate federal requirements that vehicles have a starting system that prevents the activation of the engine or motor and steering system when the key is removed;
- The vehicles’ vulnerability to hotwiring and theft has created an unreasonable and well-documented risk to safety on U.S. roads;
- Surging thefts of unsafe vehicles have consumed law enforcement and emergency responder resources; and
- The companies’ response through a phased and voluntary service campaign is insufficient to protect drivers and the public.
Kia sent WUSA9 the following statement Thursday evening:
Kia remains very focused on this issue and we continue to take action to address the concerns these Attorneys General have raised. We are committed to working with them and law enforcement agencies across their respective states to combat car theft and the role social media has played in encouraging it.
To address these crimes, we continue to roll out a free, enhanced security software upgrade to restrict the unauthorized operation of vehicle ignition systems and we are also providing steering wheel locks for impacted owners at no cost to them. To date, Kia has contacted over two million owners and lessees of Kia vehicles to let them know of the availability of the software upgrade, and more than 165,000 eligible customers have already had the upgrade installed. Furthermore, in addition to supplying more than 39,000 free steering wheel locks to over 275 law enforcement agencies across the country for distribution to impacted Kia owners, we have shipped nearly 8,000 locks directly to impacted owners as well. We will continue to provide additional free locks as they are needed.
Kia owners with questions may contact our Customer Care team directly at 1-800-333-4542 (4Kia) or the special section of the Owner's Portal at Kia.com to research software upgrade eligibility and availability and receive more information on ordering a steering wheel lock if applicable at https://ksupport. kiausa.com/ConsumerAffairs/SWLD.
All Kia vehicles are subject to and comply fully with the requirements outlined in applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, including FMVSS 114 that governs theft protection measures.
Additionally, because there is no defect in the security features in any of these vehicles and because these specific models comply fully with all applicable federal standards, a recall is neither appropriate nor necessary under federal law.