- A coalition of 36 AGs have reached a settlement with General Motors, resolving allegations that the company sold consumers’ private driver behavior data and location information to third parties, including data brokers, who then sold the data to insurance companies.
- The case alleged that from 2016 to 2024 GM enrolled millions of drivers in their Smart Driver program, which tracked their driving habits. GM expressed that this tool was a way for drivers to improve their own driving safety and told drivers that they would not share their data with insurers without express consent. The AGs alleged, however, that GM sold this information to data brokers under contracts that specified the data was to be used for insurance products, which was then sold to insurance companies who could then change premiums based on individual driving habits.
- The settlement requires GM to obtain affirmative express consent from consumers before collecting or disclosing consumer driving and location data, and also requires GM to limit the driving data it collects from consumers, protect their personal information going forward, conduct internal and external data protection and privacy program assessments, and conduct oversight and training requirements at their dealerships to protect consumers against being enrolled in data collection programs without their consent.
- In October, we reported that Montana AG Austin Knudsen filed a lawsuit against GM and OnStar over allegations that the companies collected and sold customers’ driving data without consent.