Hyundai has found itself facing a class-action lawsuit in South Korea after a recall of its Kona Electric allegedly caused prices for the all-electric subcompact SUV to drastically drop. LG Energy Solution is the supplier for the Kona Electric battery pack as well as GM’s Chevrolet Bolt. Both EVs are currently dealing massive recalls due to potential fire risk cause by faulty manufacturing of its high-voltage battery cells.
A new report from Reuters stated that 200 displeased customers have joined the lawsuit looking to acquire depreciation compensations. Although most of the incidents took place in South Korea, the recall did spread internationally due to similar events in Canada and Austria. South Korea reported 11 fires while Canada and Austria have only had one known case each.
As mentioned before the lawsuit aims at proving that the fire risks dramatically lessened the value of the Kona Electric due to the reputation damage it caused. Now, each plaintiff is asking for 8 million won ($7,200).
In lieu of the class-action, Hyundai offered a software update to resolve the issue, but the customers didn’t bite. In addition to the requested compensation, the customers are asking that the battery packs be replaced as well.
Hyundai and LG Energy Solution are claiming to not know the cause of the fires which seems to be the case with GM and the Chevy Bolt as well. So far, both are seemingly approaching the issue with a software update.