How some Kia owners can get reimbursed if their car was stolen

Evan Bourtis News10NBC

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Some Kia owners can get reimbursed from a class action lawsuit settlement if their car was stolen or if they bought anti-theft technology.

The lawsuit claims that many Kia models didn’t have proper technology to prevent theft, making them easy to hotwire with a USB cable. As News10NBC has reported, Rochester has seen a surge in thefts in the past year for both Kia and Hyundai models. The car theft total for the city alone in 2023 was just over 3,900, according to the RPD Open Data Portal, which is three and a half times more than the previous year’s total.

Kia owners will get packets in the mail explaining who qualifies for money from the settlement. The settlement impacts these Kia models if they’re between 2011 and 2021: Forte, K5, Optima, Rio, Sedona, Seltos, Sorento, Soul, and Sportage.

Here are the different benefits you can claim:

  • If your car was completely lost during a theft or attempted theft, you can get reimbursed 60% of the Black Book value.
  • If your car was damaged or you lost property because of a theft or attempted theft, you can get $3,375 or 33% of Black Book value (whichever is greater).
  • You can get up to $375 for an insurance deductible you paid because of a theft or attempted theft.
  • You can get up to $250 of other out-of-pocket expenses due to a theft or attempted theft.
  • You can get up to $250 for lost income or childcare costs for time it took to get the anti-theft software upgrade.

If you car qualified for the anti-theft software update, here are the benefits you can claim:

  • You can get up to $350 for each key fob you bought to receive the software upgrade.
  • You can get up to $50 for buying a steering wheel lock to prevent theft, as long as it was at least 30 days before the anti-theft software upgrade was available.

If you car didn’t qualify for the anti-theft software update, here are the benefits you can claim:

  • You can get up to $300 for a steering wheel lock, glass breakage alarm, or other other anti-theft technology.

The deadline to submit a claim is Jan. 11, 2025. To submit a claim, you’ll need to send in proof. You can see instructions to submit a claim online here on Kia’s website.