Hyundai Repair: open trunk light on dashboard, fuse boxes, hyundai accent

Question
I have a light on my dash that tells me my hatchback is open. It is a 2000
Hyundai accent 5 speen hatchback. My trunk is not open. The last time this
happened I had a brake light out. It was changed and the light went off. This
time I do not have any back lights out. The light on my dash stays on even
when the car is turned off, draining my battery. Should I change my brake
light even though they work?

Answer
First, check all fuses, in both the interior and underhood fuse boxes.  If certain fuses are blown, it can cause feedback on other circuits and a host of odd symptoms.

If no fuses are blown, then check the tailgate switch.  The switch is in the latch.  Unplug the latch and check to see if the lamp goes out.  If the lamp goes out, you need a new latch.  If it stays on, you could have a problem with your Electronic Time and Alarm Control module, or the wiring for the switch could be shorted to the body of the car.

I checked the schematic, and don't see how the brake lamps could possibly affect this indicator.  The fact that it went out previously was more likely coincidence during the opening and closing of the hatch.