General Motors to pay $220 million over claims it sold drivers’ data for insurance use; WA to get $12.3 million

General Motors (GM) will pay $220 million to settle allegations that it sold drivers’ location and driving behavior data to data brokers. Those brokers then sold the information to insurance companies, which used it in part to set people’s rates.

Washington and Oregon co-led the case, which was brought by a bipartisan coalition of 36 attorneys general. Washington will receive $12.3 million, according to the Washington Attorney General’s Office.

“Washingtonians’ data is personal and valuable, which is why they should always have control over how it’s used,” Attorney General Nick Brown wrote. “We’re proud to lead this bipartisan agreement holding GM accountable for misusing drivers’ data.”

What GM is accused of

From 2016 to 2024, GM enrolled millions of drivers in its Smart Driver program, which tracked their driving habits. GM promoted the program as a way for drivers to become safer.

A GM spokesperson emphasized to MyNorthwest that the product ended in 2024.

“This agreement addresses Smart Driver, a product we ended in 2024, and reinforces steps we’ve taken to strengthen our privacy practices,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Safer, more helpful and personalized experiences are enabled by connected vehicle data, and GM is committed to being clear about what information is used, how it’s protected, and the choices customers have about what they share.”

According to the attorney general’s office, GM told drivers it wouldn’t share their data with insurers without their express consent.

The attorney general’s investigation found that GM instead sold the data to brokers under contracts saying it would be used for insurance products. The brokers sold it to insurers, which could then raise or lower premiums based on how people drove. GM didn’t tell drivers their data would be used that way, the attorney general’s office discovered.

The data was detailed and could be tied to individual drivers. It included information about aggressive braking and driving over the speed limit. GM ended Smart Driver after The New York Times reported that insurers were using the data to change rates, sometimes raising them.

Signed up at the dealership

Most drivers were enrolled when they bought their cars. GM used a single sign-up process for both Smart Driver and its OnStar service. In many cases, dealership employees allegedly accepted the terms and conditions for customers without their consent, according to the attorney general’s office.

At the time, GM was pushing dealerships hard to sign customers up for OnStar. Salespeople earned bonuses based partly on how many customers enrolled in GM’s connected vehicle services, and dealerships were ranked by their enrollment numbers.

The attorney general’s office said GM’s own systems also failed to tell drivers whether they were being tracked. The OnStar app wrongly told more than 370,000 drivers they weren’t enrolled in Smart Driver while GM was collecting and selling their data.

GM later quietly removed those drivers from the program without telling them about the error. Their data stayed with the brokers and insurance companies, the attorney general’s office said.

What comes next

Under the settlement, GM must get drivers’ affirmative express consent before collecting or sharing their driving and location data.

The attorney general’s office said the terms are “significantly stronger” than any other agreement reached with GM over this conduct.

Not GM’s first settlement

Federal and state regulators have already acted on the same practices. In January 2025, the Federal Trade Commission proposed an order that would bar GM and OnStar from sharing drivers’ geolocation and driving behavior data with consumer reporting agencies for five years, according to the FTC. It was the FTC’s first action involving connected vehicle data.

In May, GM agreed to pay California $12.75 million in civil penalties over the sale of OnStar users’ data, according to CalMatters. California officials said GM made about $20 million nationwide by selling the data between 2020 and 2024 to two brokers.

After the California settlement, a GM spokesperson told CalMatters the agreement “addresses Smart Driver, a product we discontinued in 2024, and reinforces steps we’ve taken to strengthen our privacy practices.”

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