According to a new study by the Highway Loss Data Institute, upgrades to anti-theft software for Hyundai and Kia vehicles, which are regularly targeted by thieves, have reduced theft rates by more than half.
Theft rates of the affected cars skyrocketed after thieves discovered that certain car models were missing immobilizers, an anti-theft technology that has long been standard on other vehicles. The thieves used a technique popular on TikTok and other social media platforms to steal the vehicles.
The software upgrade began in February 2023 following numerous reports of theft that began during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Vehicles equipped with the new software can only be started if the owner’s key or an identical duplicate is in the ignition. Vehicles with the software also receive a window sticker designed to deter potential thieves.
About two dozen Hyundai and Kia models from 2011 to 2022 are eligible for the software upgrade. The vehicles that received it by December 2023 – a total of 30% of eligible Hyundais and 28% of eligible Kias in the HLDI database – had a 53% lower theft rate than vehicles that did not receive the upgrade, according to HLDI.
These claims do not only include whole-vehicle thefts. They also include claims for damage to stolen and recovered vehicles, theft of vehicle parts and items stolen from inside the vehicle. The frequency of whole-vehicle theft, which HLDI calculates by comparing the cost of the claim to the amount insurers pay for the same model if it is totaled in an accident, fell by 64% for vehicles with the upgrade.
The HLDI study ended in December. The organization said Hyundai and Kia have continued to implement software upgrades in their vehicles since then. The automakers said about 60% of eligible vehicles had been upgraded as of last month.
According to HLDI, the number of theft reports for Hyundai and Kia vehicles remains high, even for models with the new software. The organization believes that one of the reasons for this may be that the software-based immobilizer is only activated when the driver remembers to lock the vehicle with a key fob, while many people are used to using the switch on the door handle.
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