[RahulNagaraj]

According to media reports, Chicago has sued South Korean car brands Hyundai and Kia in response to the steep rise in vehicle thefts across the city.

Reports state that the Circuit Court of Cook County has filed a lawsuit against Kia Corporation, Kia America, Hyundai Motor Group & Hyundai Motor America, after they failed to equip their cars manufactured in the USA, between 2011 and 2022 with immobilisers. The city of Chicago wants the court to levy fines, make the car brands pay for the damages and issue an injunction to prevent them from advertising that their cars come fitted with key safety features.



The city of Chicago is said to have witnessed 21,425 car thefts last year, 41% of which were Hyundai & Kia models. This is despite them accounting for just 7% of the total cars on local roads. This year, the number of thefts is already up by 100% from what they were this time last year & models from the two South Korean car brands account for 50% of the cars stolen.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said, "The failure of Kia and Hyundai to install basic anti-theft prevention technology in these models is sheer negligence, and as a result, a citywide and nationwide crime spree around automobile theft has been unfolding right before our eyes."

The city also stated that with Hyundai & Kia cars being "entry-level models", the thefts are mostly impacting the low-income residents of Chicago. Further, concern also arises that the stolen cars can be used to commit other crimes like armed robbery or reckless driving.

Kia has released a statement mentioning that the lawsuit is "without merit". The carmaker stated they have introduced software updates to rectify the issue and also offered free steering wheel locks to over 19,000 owners.

Source: CarScoops

Link to Team-BHP news

[DevilzzzzOwn]

This shows the level of stupidity that is rampant in the policies and governance, here as well as outside.

This is like blaming a jewellery store owner for increasing chain-snatching instances in their city. Instead of looking at how to control the instances of the chain-snatchings, the body has decided to blame the Jewellery store owner.
Drum-roll!! And in the other corner, we have a manufacturer who's been looking at the numbers for a decade and is doing the bare minimum. In this analogy, the jewellery store owner is also installing the worst kind of buckles/hooks in their chains making them easier to be snatched.

End result, the city and the citizen are suffering.

[John316_WRC]

Pathetic from these Korean manufacturers.
Why the need to cut corners? They make some really good looking cars, only to be let down by other major and minor issues.
Scotty Kilmer was right all along I guess.

[darkfantasy]

when you decriminalize theft and vandalism, make it increasingly difficult for police to do their duty, and vocally support violent mobs that thrash entire neighborhoods- what do you expect? This is the height of victim-blaming to support their law-breaking voter base. Instead of putting the perpetrators behind bars, they are going after car makers?. Next policy - if you had a break-in they will sue you for installing unsecure locks. This circus in Chicago is getting more and more ridiculous with each passing day.

[no_fear]

What Chicago did is a step in the right direction. The news article does not cover the reason why Hyundai and Kia got sued by Chicago city authorities in the first place.

There is a long and detailed report on why Hyundai and Kia messed up, causing numerous people to lose insurance coverage... a good read on jalopnik.

https://jalopnik.com/hyundai-kia-set...ars-1850454519

https://jalopnik.com/insurance-compa...and-1850025480

[greenhorn]

I'm not sure how the governments can sue - the vehicles are legally compliant. US regulations do not require immobilizers - It's just that 96% of all manufacturers do. Just because everyone does it, does not make it illegal for you not to.

[el lobo 6061]

This is what poor governance and not taking strict action against criminals causes.

These days thefts in California US Malls is rampant, reason being stealing anything under $950 is called misdemeanor and does not count as felony.

If govt keeps doing such things, its the residents who will suffer.

Blaming car companies is like pointing fingers on others.

[mttraveler]

I work for an Insurance agency bases in US. Many insurance companies have issued specific guidelines regarding the coverage for these Hyundai and Kia vehicle. They've even mentioned the affected list of vehicles.

[anjan_c2007]

All praises for the City of Chicago taking lead after New York City to sue the two carmakers due to their vehicles lacking immobilizers and being easy to steal. Hopefully these two carmakers ( they are siblings) will lose some market traction and also their annual balance sheets could be dented.

Insurance premiums for such theft prone cars are also higher in the U.S. as insurance companies focus on annual settlement claims by such cars, based on car makes and models.

Contrastingly, India lacks such focus and can we imagine a public authority suing car companies for whatever reason be it passenger safety, thefts or some car models that are more accident prone?

Our insurers since ages only focus on the car's ex-showroom price/depreciated price after one/one plus years to compute their insurance premiums, but never on other factors.

[NT_GT]

Wow! 7% of the sample size contributing to 50% of the total theft incidences!
Statistically it is too obvious. Good that at least the local administration is taking steps to pull up the manufacturers.
Regarding the politics of theft and other crimes, it is best not to bring it in here. The numbers speak for themselves.
Moreover, car theft is a serious felony not a simple misdemeanor.