Hyundai and Kia Targeted by Theft... Agree to $270 Million Compensation in US Class Action Lawsuit

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors, which became targets of a series of vehicle theft incidents in the United States last year, agreed on the 18th (local time) to compensate victims who filed a class-action lawsuit claiming the sale of defective vehicles with $200 million (approximately 270 billion KRW).

The two companies' U.S. subsidiaries jointly issued a press release on the same day, stating, "We have signed a settlement to resolve the class-action lawsuit filed by owners of vehicles without anti-theft devices."

The companies stated that they will provide cash compensation to consumers who suffered theft damages that were not covered by insurance, with the total compensation amount potentially reaching $200 million. For some vehicle owners whose cars cannot be upgraded with anti-theft software, up to $300 (approximately 400,000 KRW) in cash will be provided upon purchasing various anti-theft devices.

Last year, across the United States, crimes targeting Hyundai and Kia vehicles without an "engine immobilizer" spread like a game on social media. The engine immobilizer is a chip embedded with a special code in the car key handle, and vehicles without this device became targets for thieves. As a result, affected vehicle owners filed a class-action lawsuit against Hyundai and Kia, claiming they sold defective vehicles. The number of class-action participants has not been disclosed.

The court is expected to review this settlement and approve it around July. After final approval, individual parties participating in the class-action lawsuit will be notified according to the settlement terms.

Meanwhile, Hyundai and Kia estimate that about 9 million models sold in the U.S. from 2011 to 2022 could be exposed to theft crimes. All vehicles produced after November 2021 are equipped with engine immobilizers as standard. Additionally, in February of this year, they announced support for anti-theft software upgrades for 8.3 million vehicles in the U.S. and are currently implementing this.

The companies explained that although these vehicles fully comply with the anti-theft requirements mandated by U.S. authorities, they reached this settlement to support the security of their customers' vehicles.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.