BUFFALO, N.Y. — Over the past three years, the numbers have been trending in the same alarming direction when it comes to Kia and Hyundai thefts.
But for the first time, Buffalo Police shared figures that show a promising reversal.
The department shared with 2 On Your Side that from last year to this year, it has seen a 65% decrease in Kia thefts and 72% decrease in Hyundai thefts.
Those numbers come amid new nationwide figures from the Highway Loss Data Institute released last week that indicate new anti-theft software rolled out by the carmakers has been working, leading to a 64% decrease in insurance claims nationwide among Kias and Hyundais that have the new software compared to those of the same year, make, and model without it.
The new, free software was released last February as a part of a $200 million settlement after a 1,000% increase in Kia and Hyundai thefts between 2020 and the first half of 2023. The rise was largely due to a series of social media challenges showing people how to steal the vehicles. The software makes it harder to start the vehicles when the owner’s key is not in the ignition.
The software was made available to models made before 2023, but for those unable to get the upgrade, the automakers also provided steering wheel locks as an alternative.
In the past few months, especially, more and more vehicles have installed the new software with Hyundai reporting 61% of eligible vehicles have it. Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia told 2 On Your Side he thinks that is helping, in addition to other efforts.
“I'm certain that the software is helping,” he said. “But the measures that we've taken as a department, the data driven approach, the manpower approach, making more arrests on these and absolutely the assistance of the sheriff's helicopter, which is part of our approach and how we're handling these — I think a combination of everything is working.”
Gramaglia also said that his department has seen theft attempts down by over 50% this year for both Kias and Hyundais. He said he isn’t sure if that is because the new software is deterring thieves or if the teenagers often responsible for these crimes are losing interest.
But nevertheless, they’re statistics that are encouraging for him and his department, which has had to dedicate a significant amount of resources to this problem in recent years.