A Glitch in the System
Almost all new cars sold in the U.S. come with some form of Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS), offering safety features such as automatic emergency braking and lane departure warning. However, these systems are far from perfect, as demonstrated by the widely reported issues involving Tesla’s Autopilot.
Now, Hyundai is facing one of the latest lawsuits involving an alleged ADAS defect. According to ClassAction.org, the Korean marque was sued over its Direct Driver Monitoring System (DDMS), which allegedly misreads drivers’ eyes and head positions, causing false warnings, sudden braking, and even the loss of certain functions like cruise control. The vehicles named in the lawsuit include the 2024–2026 Santa Fe, 2025–2026 Ioniq 5, 2025–2026 Tucson, 2025–2026 Santa Cruz, and 2026 Palisade.
Jared Levenson/Autoblog
Eye Spy a Problem
DDMS uses an in-cabin camera to monitor drivers’ faces and eyes to determine whether they are paying attention to the road or have become unresponsive. But because of the alleged defects, the system has reportedly become more of an inconvenience than a safety measure, with plaintiffs arguing they wouldn’t have bought or leased an affected Hyundai model, or would have paid less, had they known about the issue.
The lawsuit claims that the system, which works with the Forward Attention Warning (FAW) function, can misread drivers wearing heavy makeup or hats, moving their heads up and down, or sitting too high or too low. Factors such as sunlight reflecting off sunglasses and driving on rough roads were also mentioned in the complaint.
The plaintiffs argue that Hyundai knew about the alleged defect, citing a technical service bulletin issued in January 2025. According to the lawsuit, the automaker told service centers to explain the limitations of DDMS to customers, recommending different sunglasses or glasses and adjustments to seating positions, but didn’t offer a repair or replacement to resolve the alleged problem.
Hyundai
Safety Under Pressure
As the legal battle continues, Hyundai also addressed a separate Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist (FCA) issue earlier this year, which could cause more than 421,000 vehicles to brake unexpectedly. These vehicles were recalled, though the problem involved the exterior-facing camera, not the driver-facing one at the center of this lawsuit.
Still, the lawsuit highlights how even modern driver-assistance systems can allegedly misinterpret driving conditions and respond incorrectly. Despite concerns about advanced safety systems taking greater control of vehicles, their adoption is becoming increasingly common. Automakers face growing pressure to improve driver-monitoring technology as safety standards become stricter, with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) factoring driver-monitoring safeguards into its ratings.
Chase Bierenkoven
