GM Settles California Suit Over Selling Driver Data to Insurers
▼ Summary
– General Motors will pay $12.75 million to settle a California lawsuit over selling driver location and data.
– GM agreed to stop selling customer data to brokers for five years and let California drivers block OnStar location data collection.
– The lawsuit followed a 2024 New York Times report on automakers sharing driving data with data brokers and insurers.
– The settlement requires GM to provide clear privacy notices, delete covered driver data, and get consent before collecting driving data.
– GM stated the settlement addresses its discontinued Smart Driver product and reinforces its privacy practices.
General Motors has reached a settlement worth $12.75 million to resolve a California lawsuit alleging the automaker improperly sold driver location and behavioral data to insurance companies. The proposed agreement, filed on Friday, requires GM to halt the sale of customer information to data brokers for the next five years. Additionally, California drivers will gain the ability to prevent GM’s OnStar service from collecting their location data.
The legal action stemmed from a 2024 investigation by The New York Times, which exposed that several automakers, including GM, had been sharing driving metrics such as speed, hard braking, and rapid acceleration with data brokers and insurers. Those companies reportedly used the information to adjust insurance premiums, sparking widespread privacy concerns.
Earlier this year, the Federal Trade Commission finalized its own settlement with GM and OnStar, similarly barring them from disclosing driver data to third-party brokers for five years. The California agreement goes further, mandating that GM provide “clear and conspicuous” privacy notices to drivers when they enroll in OnStar. The automaker must also delete all driver data covered by the lawsuit and obtain explicit customer consent before collecting or using any driving information.
“This agreement addresses Smart Driver, a product we discontinued in 2024, and reinforces steps we’ve taken to strengthen our privacy practices,” said GM spokesperson Charlotte McCoy in a statement. “Vehicle connectivity is central to a modern and safe driving experience, which is why we’re committed to being clear and transparent with our customers about our practices and the choices and control they have over their information.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta emphasized the broader implications of the settlement. “Today’s settlement requires General Motors to abandon these illegal practices and underscores the importance of data minimization in California’s privacy law. Companies can’t just hold on to data and use it later for another purpose,” Bonta said in a press release.
(Source: The Verge)
