General Motors sued: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton files lawsuit against automaker, alleging illegal sale of driver data

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued General Motors on Tuesday, alleging the automaker illegally collected and sold driver data to insurance companies without their consent or knowledge, according to a statement from the AG’s office.

General Motors is the first automaker to be hit with a lawsuit after the attorney general opened an investigation into several manufacturers in June for allegedly collecting massive amounts of data and then illegally selling it.

Lacking a comprehensive and modern data privacy and security law in federal law, many states are stepping in to enact their own regulations to protect consumers in the ever-growing data brokerage market.

In 2015 and later model cars, the Detroit automaker allegedly used the technology to “collect, record, analyze and transmit highly detailed driving data about every time a driver used their vehicle,” according to the AG’s statement .

General Motors sold that information to several other companies, including at least two companies for the purpose of generating “Driving Scores” about GM customers, the AG alleged. The lawsuit said the two companies then sold those scores to insurance companies.

Insurance companies can use the data to see how many times people have exceeded a speed limit or obeyed other traffic laws. Some insurance companies ask customers if they want to voluntarily enroll in such programs, promising lower rates for safer drivers.

But the attorney general’s office alleged that GM “misled” its Texas customers by encouraging them to sign up for programs like OnStar Smart Driver. But by agreeing to join these programs, customers unknowingly agreed to collect and sell their data, the attorney general’s office said.

“Despite lengthy and convoluted disclosures, General Motors never informed its customers of its true conduct — the systematic collection and sale of their highly detailed driving data,” the AG’s office said in a statement.

According to a statement from General Motors earlier this year, the company discontinued OnStar Smart Driver based on customer feedback.

A General Motors spokesman says the company has been “…in discussions” with the attorney general’s office and says, “We share the desire to protect consumer privacy.”

General Motors also said that as of March 20, 2024, it would no longer share information with data brokers such as LexisNexis and Verisk, which create consumer reports.

Honda and Hyundai are no longer partners with Verisk, according to its website.

Find out what data your car can collect by looking up your vehicle identification number.

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