Heads up if you drive a Hyundai or Kia, thieves may be after your car.
Some lower priced vehicles made by these , according to a study conducted by the Highway Loss Data Institute.
Matt Moore, senior vice president at the institute, says it’s because someone noticed a weakness in the cars’ security and posted it on social media.
The institute found that among 2015-to-2019 model-year vehicles, theft claims were nearly twice as common for Hyundai and Kia vehicles when compared to a group of all other manufacturers.
鈥淐ar theft spiked during the pandemic,鈥� Moore said. 鈥淭hese numbers tell us that some vehicles may be targeted because they鈥檙e fast or worth a lot of money and others because they鈥檙e easy to steal.鈥�
Some of those cars don’t have electronic immobilizers, which prevent thieves from breaking in and bypassing the ignition.
鈥淥ur earlier studies show that vehicle theft losses plunged after immobilizers were introduced,鈥� Moore said. 鈥淯nfortunately, Hyundai and Kia have lagged behind other automakers in making them standard equipment.鈥�
Thefts involving certain lower-priced Hyundai and Kia vehicles suddenly spiked in 2021.
鈥淗yundai Motor America is concerned about the recent rise in auto thefts of certain Hyundai model vehicles,鈥� the company said in a Highway Loss Data Institute news release. 鈥淲hile all of our vehicles meet or exceed Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, unfortunately, our vehicles have been targeted in a coordinated effort on social media.鈥�
