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MAPLE GROVE, Minnesota (WCCO) -- A 2019 blue Hyundai Elantra has given Erin Walters the freedom to travel across the country. That all changed a week ago after she tried renewing her car insurance with State Farm.
"I was shocked that State Farm was denying me," Walters said. She's been a loyal customer for five years.
Walters said her representative told her she was denied because of the make and model of her vehicle.
The South Korean automaker has been targeted by thieves using a technique to steal Kias and Hyundais popularized on TikTok and other social media platforms.
Now, this is impacting Walters who's never fell victim to these thefts.
"I would never buy a Hyundai because they are not stepping up to fixing this situation," Walters said.
Walters says she was told by her State Farm agent that she would have to get a push to state ignition in order to be insured.
A State Farm Spokesperson sent WCCO's Ubah Ali the following statement:
"State Farm has stopped accepting new customer applications in some states for certain model years and trim levels of Hyundai and Kia vehicles because theft losses for these vehicles have increased dramatically. This is a serious problem impacting our customers and the entire auto insurance industry.
"We take seriously our responsibility to manage risk and the impact of excess claim costs on all our customers. In this case, it became necessary to take action to protect our policyholders and our business.
In the last week, 40% of stolen cars were Kias and Hyundais, and Minneapolis police say they are seeing a decrease.
Walters believes the vehicle manufacturer should be issuing a recall and paying for these upgrades.
"We are monitoring this situation very closely and will adjust our approach as appropriate."
For the last week, Walters says she's been in front of the computer looking for a policy. Saturday afternoon, Walters was working to get a claim quote from Progressive before being let down.
A window popped up that read in part, "Thank you for shopping with Progressive-based on vehicle information we are unable to offer you a policy due to high theft rates."
