US Attorney Generals Seek Recall of Kia, Hyundai Vehicles in US

On Thursday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 17 other attorneys general urged the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to recall "unsafe" Hyundai Motor Co, Ltd HYMTF Hyundai and Kia vehicles manufactured between 2011 and 2022.
The lawmakers alleged the automakers failed to include the standard anti-theft devices endangering the lives of the vehicle owners and the public.
The regulators castigated the automakers for passing on the risk to the customers instead of taking corrective action.
Hyundai and Kia's vehicles represent a large share of stolen cars in multiple U.S. cities, according to data from police and state officials, Reuters reports.
Hyundai argued that while some of its vehicles lacked immobilizers, they complied with federal anti-theft requirements.
"These specific models comply fully with all applicable federal standards, a recall is neither appropriate nor necessary under federal law," Kia stated.
U.S. theft claims were nearly twice as common for Hyundai and Kia vehicles compared with all other manufacturers among 2015-2019 model-year vehicles, data suggested in 2022.
Bonta said the carmakers included the industry standard immobilizer in the same models in Canada and Europe but chose to "carve out" the U.S.
The automakers had agreed to software upgrades to 8.3 million U.S. vehicles to help curb thefts. However, upgrades will not be available for many affected vehicles until June and were incompatible with some 2011-2022 models, Bonta stated.
Price Action: HYMTF shares closed lower by 0.39% at $35.94 on Thursday.

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