TikTok trend has car insurance companies halting policies following car thefts
ROSEMONT -- A startling new social media trend has some car owners and law enforcement agencies across the country on high alert.
It's a challenge on TikTok where users video themselves breaking into Hyundais and Kias of a certain make and model. The trend is now grabbing the attention of auto insurance companies.
Natalie Galeckas, a Rosemont resident, says her Hyundai was stolen from her driveway around 10 p.m. on January 19.
Video from a ring doorbell camera across the street shows two people walk-up to her driveway, appearing to peek inside a 2012 Hyundai before breaking in and driving off. She says it took less than two minutes.
"I came out in the morning and it was gone," Galeckas said.
Galeckas was getting ready for an early-morning ER shift when she went outside and saw the empty spot in her driveway. She woke her husband up to investigate.
"So he came out and, sure enough, there was broken glass in the driveway," Galeckas said.
She reported it to the police who told her she may have been a victim of the latest TikTok challenge.
"[The police officer] said 'all the Hyundais and Kias have gone missing, they keep getting stolen,' " she said.
Once inside, thieves use a USB cord to hotwire the car.
Galeckas' insurance company, USAA, told her they would pay her for what her car is worth and they also paid for a temporary rental car.
But since the trend has gone viral, two of the country's top insurance providers, State Farm and Progressive, are halting new insurance policies to certain makes and models of Hyundai and Kia.
CBS13 reached out to the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office but they were unable to provide information on Galeckas' case. But they say they are aware of the trend.
