HOLYOKE, MA (WGGB/WSHM) - We’re getting answers on a new announcement from automakers Hyundai and Kia, under a new nationwide settlement, the companies must now offer free repairs to millions of models to equip them with proper anti-theft technology. It comes after recent TikTok trends that lead to hundreds of Hyundai and Kia thefts across the country, and right here in western Mass.

“We had a client call, he’s unfortunately (had) two times his car has been taken,” said Todd Dibiasi, the Service Director at Gary Rome Hyundai.

That’s not the only call that Gary Rome Hyundai has received related to car-thefts in recent years, nor is it uncommon for any Hyundai or Kia dealership to field these types of calls.

“There was kind of a tick-tock challenge out there and they were basically telling usually kids, right, that it’s easy to steal these vehicles,” said Gary Rome. In 2023 alone, Springfield Police saw the number of motor vehicle thefts in the city nearly double, 75 percent of those stolen cars were either Hyundais or Kias.

According to Gary Rome, President and CEO of Gary Rome Hyundai and Gary Rome Kia, there’s now a new, and free, way for Hyundai and Kia owners to make sure this doesn’t happen to them, an updated fix from their first immobilizer, “It’s like a 2.0 version. So they’re going to take a collar and they’re going to epoxy it around the ignition. Then, it’s virtually impossible for them to steal the vehicle.”

Let’s say those thieves did make it past the collar, “It’ll be completely immobilized and they won’t be able to steal the vehicle,” the best part for customers and for Rome, “It doesn’t cost me anything and it’s absolutely free to our customers.”

The vehicles eligible for fixes date as far back as 2011 and as recently as 2022, spanning across 9 million eligible vehicles nationwide. so, to get the “anti-theft cylinder protector and decal installed, here’s what you need to do according to Gary Rome, “so, you want to call, first of all, see if your car is eligible and then we’ll make an appointment for you to come in and we’ll take care of it for you.

Todd Dibiasi, the Service Director at Gary Rome Hyundai, explained the procedure in simple terms, “You’ve got to take a couple trim covers off, put the piece in, it gets glued together over the ignition to protect it. So, it takes us maybe a couple hours, if that.”

The only thing you need to do in this case, is make the call. If you were victim to the TikTok trend and had your vehicle stolen, don’t worry, the settlement covers you too.

Hyundai and Kia are required to outfit all future vehicles with an engine immobilizer to prevent these thefts, plus they’ll pay up to $4.5 million dollars in restitution to those who had their cars damaged by thieves.

For a full list of vehicles that qualify for the installation, click on either of these links for Hyundai or Kia motors.

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