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Auto theft is not a design flaw. It is a crime. Yet, across blue states, Democratic attorneys general have decided that the real villains behind a recent surge in car thefts are not the people actually stealing vehicles, but instead the companies that made them. No wonder more and more businesses and families are fleeing low-trust, chaotic blue states for safe red states where criminals, not cars, are punished for wrongdoing.

Electronic immobilizers, an anti-theft device that prevents a vehicle from starting without the correct key, have been around for decades, but were not widely installed on U.S. cars until the 1990s. While the devices proved popular with many consumers, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration never made them part of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards because they do not contribute to the safety of a car.

Hyundai and Kia had been selling millions of cars in the United States without electronic immobilizers for over a decade without any complaints. Then, in the summer of 2022, a series of TikTok videos went viral demonstrating how to start certain Kia and Hyundai cars by bypassing relatively unguarded ignition systems. Thefts of Kias and Hyundais skyrocketed as mostly teenage boys filmed themselves stealing cars and joyriding in them.

One would hope that district attorneys and attorneys general would have responded to such a crime wave by arresting and prosecuting those committing the auto thefts, with particular attention paid to those who made videos celebrating their crimes. But with the Black Lives Matter riots still potent politically, especially in Democratic states and cities, cracking down on teenage auto thieves was a non-starter, especially since those committing the crimes were disproportionately minorities.

Instead of arresting and prosecuting the criminals committing crimes, Democrats sued the companies making the cars that are getting stolen. Despite breaking no laws and violating no safety standards, Hyundai and Kia settled with Democratic attorneys general this week, agreeing to pay up to $4.5 million in “restitution” to consumers and to add an electronic immobilizer to any Hyundai or Kia car without the device. Essentially, Democrats have added electronic immobilizers to federal safety standards through litigation instead of regulation.

“By failing to include industry-standard anti-theft technology in their vehicles,” Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison wrote, “Hyundai and Kia unleashed a wave of auto thefts that cost Minnesotans.” But was it Hyundai and Kia that “unleashed a wave of auto thefts”? Hyundai and Kia had been selling the supposedly too-easy-not-to-steal cars for over a decade without incident until a social media craze suddenly made the crime popular. How is that Hyundai’s fault?

Enforcing the law requires something many progressive prosecutors openly reject: consequences. In blue cities and states, auto theft is often treated as a low-priority offense. Juvenile offenders are released without charges. Repeat offenders face downgraded penalties. Police are discouraged from pursuing suspects. Prosecutors boast about diversion and decarceration while victims are left with higher insurance premiums, broken windows, and lost vehicles.

There is a fundamental difference between the high-trust societies sought by conservatives and the low-trust societies practiced by Democrats. In high-trust societies, laws are enforced consistently. Most people behave honestly because they know others will too, and because they know those who don’t will face consequences. As a result, businesses can operate with fewer safeguards, lower costs, and better products.

In low-trust societies, the opposite happens. When theft and fraud are tolerated, everyone pays. Companies must invest in locks, cameras, guards, lawsuits, and compliance regimes. Prices rise. Convenience disappears. Every day life becomes more expensive and less pleasant, not because businesses are greedy, but because disorder is costly.

If Democrats want fewer auto thefts, the solution is obvious and proven: enforce the law. Prosecute repeat offenders. Restore deterrence. Support policing. Stop pretending that accountability is cruelty.

Until they do, blaming corporations and using them as piggy banks will remain a convenient distraction from the real problem, and the rest of us will keep paying the price.

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