Caught Spying: How GM and Data Brokers Sold Millions of Americans' Driving Data to Insurance Companies



 DETROIT, MI — General Motors (GM), the largest automaker in the United States, is facing severe backlash and multiple federal lawsuits following damning revelations that it spent years covertly recording the driving habits of millions of Americans and selling that sensitive information to data brokers, who then shared it with insurance companies.

The Invisible Tracker A detailed investigation first published by The New York Times exposed how GM’s OnStar "Smart Driver" feature was collecting precise data on hard braking, rapid acceleration, speeding, and even the exact location of drivers. While consumers were often pitched the feature as a way to improve safety or get good driving discounts, the reality was far more insidious.

LexisNexis & The Premium Spike GM sold this petabytes of personal data to massive risk-assessment firms, primarily LexisNexis Risk Solutions and Verisk. These brokers then compiled detailed "risk scores" for individual drivers. Insurance giants (like Progressive, Allstate, and Liberty Mutual) purchased these scores and used them to justify shocking increases in car insurance premiums—sometimes doubling or tripling them—for drivers with perfectly clean records.

The Backlash and Halt Following immense public outrage, congressional inquiries, and class-action lawsuits alleging violation of consumer protection laws, GM announced that it would immediately halt data sharing with LexisNexis and Verisk. However, the damage for millions of drivers has already been done, and the legal battles over privacy violations are just beginning.


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