Current:Home > InvestSoftware upgrades for Hyundai, Kia help cut theft rates, new HLDI research finds-VaTradeCoin
Software upgrades for Hyundai, Kia help cut theft rates, new HLDI research finds
lotradecoin crypto trading academy View Date:2024-12-25 23:26:20
Anti-theft software upgrades provided for Hyundai and Kia vehicles regularly targeted by thieves has cut theft rates by more than half, according to new research from the Highway Loss Data Institute.
Theft rates of the affected automobiles soared after thieves discovered that certain car models lacked engine immobilizers, an anti-theft technology that has long been standard in other vehicles. Thieves used a technique popularized on TikTok and other social media platforms to take the vehicles.
The software upgrade started in February 2023 after numerous theft claims that began during the Covid-19 pandemic.
For vehicles that have the new software installed, the automobile will only start if the owner’s key or an identical duplicate is in the ignition. Vehicles with the software also receive a window sticker aimed at deterring potential thieves.
Approximately two dozen 2011-22 Hyundai and Kia models are eligible for the software upgrade. Those vehicles that received it as of December 2023 — a total of 30% of the eligible Hyundais and 28% of the eligible Kias in HLDI’s database — had theft claim frequencies that were 53% lower than vehicles that didn’t get the upgrade, according to HLDI.
Those claims aren’t all for thefts of the entire vehicle. They also include claims for damage to vehicles that were stolen and recovered, theft of vehicle parts and items stolen from inside the vehicle. The frequency of whole vehicle theft, which HLDI calculates by matching the cost of the claim to the amount insurers pay for the same model if it’s totaled in a crash, fell by a larger 64% for vehicles with the upgrade.
The HLDI study ended in December. The organization said that Hyundai and Kia have continued to implement software upgrades in vehicles since that time. The automakers have said that about 60% of eligible vehicles had been upgraded as of last month.
The HLDI said that the frequency of theft claims for the Hyundai and Kia vehicles remains high, even for models with the new software. The organization believes one of the reasons for this may be that the software-based immobilizer only activates if the driver remembers to lock the vehicle with a fob, while many people are in the habit of using the switch on the door handle.
veryGood! (54)
Related
- American who says he crossed into Syria on foot is freed after 7 months in detention
- Columbus Crew vs. Los Angeles FC Leagues Cup final: How to watch Sunday's championship
- Judge to hear arguments over whether to dismiss Arizona’s fake elector case
- Famed Coney Island Cyclone roller coaster is shut down after mid-ride malfunction
- Biden commutes roughly 1,500 sentences and pardons 39 people in biggest single
- NCAA issues Notice of Allegations to Michigan for sign-stealing scandal
- Deion Sanders discusses external criticism after taking action against journalist
- DeSantis’ plan to develop state parks faces setback as golf course backer pulls out
- KISS OF LIFE reflects on sold
- Lights, camera, cars! Drive-in movie theaters are still rolling along
Ranking
- Syrian rebel leader says he will dissolve toppled regime forces, close prisons
- ‘It’s Just No Place for an Oil Pipeline’: A Wisconsin Tribe Continues Its Fight to Remove a 71-Year-Old Line From a Pristine Place
- Prices at the pump are down. Here's why.
- Kroger and Albertsons head to court to defend merger plan against US regulators’ objections
- 'The Later Daters': Cast, how to stream new Michelle Obama
- Horoscopes Today, August 24, 2024
- Search continues for woman missing after Colorado River flash flood at Grand Canyon National Park
- Lights, camera, cars! Drive-in movie theaters are still rolling along
Recommendation
-
'Mary': How to stream, what biblical experts think about Netflix's new coming
-
Legendary USA TODAY editor Bob Dubill dies: 'He made every newsroom better'
-
Flights for life: Doctor uses plane to rescue hundreds of dogs from high-kill shelters
-
Defendant in Titan submersible wrongful death lawsuit files to move case to federal court
-
One Tech Tip: How to protect your communications through encryption
-
Kelly Osbourne says Slipknot's Sid Wilson 'set himself on fire' in IG video from hospital
-
German police say 26-year-old man has turned himself in, claiming to be behind Solingen knife attack
-
'We dodged a bullet': Jim Harbaugh shares more details about Chargers elevator rescue