Woman’s Kia stolen in Kentwood twice, losing insurance

KENTWOOD, Mich. (WOOD) — Two of the nation’s prime insurance businesses are reportedly dropping protection of some Kias and Hyundais as car thefts stay rampant throughout the nation.

Kent County is not any exception in the brand new 12 months.

When Cyndi Christian purchased her brand-new Kia in 2020, she didn’t suppose she’d have to purchase one other automobile for a very long time. Now, she needs she made a unique choice.

“I simply needed it to be my without end automobile,” Christian mentioned.

Instead, it’s been a nightmare.

“Now I don’t need it,” she mentioned.

Not simply as soon as, however two occasions now, Christian’s 2019 Kia Optima has been stolen outdoors her previous condominium complicated in Kentwood. Someone tried stealing it a 3rd time too.

It all began July of final 12 months when somebody broke the again window and took off the steering column, however the automobile in the end wasn’t stolen. She nonetheless needed to take it in for repairs and acquired it again a month later.

In August, her automobile was taken in the nighttime.

“I don’t wish to rise up in the morning and have my automobile be gone,” Christian mentioned.

When she went to her leasing supervisor the following morning, she discovered she wasn’t the one one.

“When I used to be there, there have been two or three different folks there that have been reporting their automobile was stolen the identical evening,” Christian mentioned. “Kias.”

She acquired the automobile again in October earlier than it was stolen once more the following month. Both occasions, the automobile was trashed, with busted home windows, wooden stripper poured everywhere in the roof and broken doorways. The car registration was additionally taken each occasions.

Christian paid greater than $1,500 for repairs.

“If I wish to go the grocery retailer, if I wish to go the mall, I’m very cautious about the place I park to verify I’m hopefully below a lightweight that has a digicam,” Christian mentioned. “It’s no method to reside to have to consider it on a regular basis.”

Now, she’s about to lose her insurance. Last week, Progressive despatched her a letter saying her coverage will expire Feb. 19.

“I don’t need a automobile fee,” Christian mentioned. “But I don’t have a alternative if I don’t have an insurance firm to cowl me.”

She’s not the one one losing insurance. Progressive and State Farm have now reportedly stopped giving out new insurance policies for sure fashions of Kias and Hyundais, citing rampant thefts nationwide.

State Farm confirmed the information in an announcement to News 8, saying it “turned essential to take motion to guard our policyholders and our enterprise.”

“State Farm has briefly stopped accepting new buyer purposes in some states for sure mannequin years and trim ranges of Hyundai and Kia automobiles as a result of theft losses for these automobiles have elevated dramatically. This is a significant issue impacting our prospects and all the auto insurance business.

“We take significantly our accountability to handle danger and the affect of extra declare prices on all our prospects. In this case, it turned essential to take motion to guard our policyholders and our enterprise.

“We are monitoring this example very carefully and can regulate our method as acceptable.

For info on auto theft, we advocate reaching out to the Insurance Information Institute and the National Insurance Crime Bureau.”

State Farm

State Farm mentioned it’s doing this in “some states” however didn’t say if Michigan is included or which fashions are impacted.

News 8 has reached out to State Farm and Progressive asking if Michigan is impacted by the adjustments each corporations are making.

Brian Boer, an advisor with Boer Insurance Group in Plainfield Township, mentioned massive insurance corporations making a transfer like that’s significantly uncommon.

“Some of the regional, smaller insurance corporations, they attempt to area of interest themselves out a bit of extra,” Boer mentioned. “But for 2 massive corporations like that, that could be very uncommon.”

“You’ll see insurance corporations say, ‘I don’t wish to insure that kind of Lamborghini, we’re not going to insure that Maserati,’” Boer added. “That’s simply not their market. They’re not going for the high-end luxurious automobiles. But for sort of the on a regular basis car just like the Kias and Hyundais we’re listening to about, it’s very uncommon to see insurance corporations simply pumping the brakes and say, ‘We’re not providing protection going ahead.’”

Boer mentioned that insurance corporations nonetheless masking Kias and Hyundais may nonetheless elevate costs.

“They’re going to see rising insurance prices particular to these automobiles primarily based on all these claims which might be being paid,” Boer mentioned. “Even the businesses which might be nonetheless providing protection on these automobiles, anyplace that you’ve got extra claims being paid, that cash has to return from someplace. It’s going to be mirrored in the insurance prices for that car.”

In Kent County, Kia and Hyundai thefts stay excessive in the brand new 12 months.

This month, the Grand Rapids Police Department has responded to 109 car thefts or tried car thefts, practically half of them being Kias and Hyundais. The Kent County Sheriff’s Office has handled 41 stolen vehicles up to now this month, with 12 of them being Kias or Hyundais.

In 2022, GRPD responded to 1,316 car thefts in complete, and 765 of them concerned Kias or Hyundais. The Kent County Sheriff’s Office handled 415 stolen automobiles, with 112 of them being Kias or Hyundais.

“I am going from being so offended to pissed off then unhappy,” Christian mentioned. “Because I can maintain it. But there’s in all probability individuals who can’t maintain it if their automobile is stolen. Or if they will’t pay the deductible. Or don’t have renter’s insurance or automobile rental insurance. I attempt to take into account myself fortunate that I can maintain it, however it nonetheless makes me mad.”