Tik-Tok challenge costs Hyundai-Kia $200M in pre-trial settlement

Hyundai and Kia have agreed to pay U.S. $200 million in a class action filed by disgruntled car owners in North America, New York Times reports. It was ruled that the corporation failed to take the necessary action to prevent the thefts, leading to the infamous Tik-Tok challenge inciting viewers to steal Kia and Hyundai cars simply because it was too easy to do.

Owners of all cars from these two brands that were made from 2011 through 2022 and shipped without a steering immobilizer are eligible for a compensation. The estimated number is 9,000,000 cars. Only the owners that had their cars damaged or stolen will get reimbursed.

Kia and Hyundai also pledge to cover all costs arising from the insurance premium skyrocketing over the years, as well as other personal expenses of owners – taxis, rental fees and so on. All affected cars will have their software updated, and the owners of older models with no update functionality will be paid $300.

The one catch is that the pre-trial settlement has yet to be approved by a court hearing scheduled for July. Referencing statistics accumulated by the U.S. authorities, NY Times reports 14 accidents and 8 fatalities confirmed as linked to the theft challenge. The total number of cars stolen remains unknown.