In court documents, Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers noted that some of the “third parties” who purchased this information used it against customers by denying insurance coverage requests and raising premium rates.
Nebraska has become the latest state to file a lawsuit against General Motors and OnStar, claiming the two companies colluded to collect, process, and sell drivers’ data to insurance companies.
“For years, [General Motors] deceptively collected and sold customers’ data without their knowledge or consent in Nebraska,” state Attorney General Michael T. Hilgers wrote. “That data included numerous datapoints regarding customers’ driving habits and operation of their GM vehicles.”
“Since at least 2015, GM has outfitted its vehicles with telematics technology that collects, records, analyzes, and transmits highly specific data regarding drivers’ vehicle usage,” Hilgers’ lawsuit alleges. “GM then unlawfully processed and sold the private data of its customers, without their informed consent, making millions of dollars in the process.”
This “highly specific” data included the date, start time, end time, vehicle speed, driver and passenger seatbelt status, and distance driven each and every time a GM vehicle was turned on and driven, even over short distances. In court documents, the attorney general’s office noted that some of the “third parties” who purchased this information used it against customers by denying insurance coverage requests and raising premium rates.
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“GM told the third-party companies that vehicle purchasers had consented to the collection, sale and use of their data,” the lawsuit states. “But that was not true. Instead, GM employed deceptive, unconscionable, and unlawful tactics to enroll its customers in its data collection programs.”
Hilgers’ complaint notes that General Motors obtained a significant amount of data from OnStar products such as Connected Vehicle Services, the OnStar Guardian App, and brand-specific apps, such as the myGMC and myCadillac apps.
“GM’s deceptive and unlawful tactics include overwhelming and misleading vehicle purchasers (or lessees) with pages of deceptive, inconspicuous, and materially misleading disclosures about OnStar products, including product descriptions and privacy policies that failed to adequately disclose how GM would use its customers’ Driving Data,” the lawsuit alleges.
The complaint further claims that, though customers were not obliged to comply with the OnStar agreement, many dealerships made it seem as if opting out was impossible.
“GM … presented customers’ agreement[s] to those disclosures as a necessary component of the car-buying process,” the lawsuit says. “If purchasers tried to decline, they were met with ominous and inaccurate warnings that key safety features of the vehicle they had just purchased would become inoperative. In some instances, car dealership employees merely enrolled customers in GM’s programs without their knowledge and consent, because GM incentivized those employees to do so.”
Other states, along with the Federal Trade Commission, have filed separate lawsuits challenging General Motors and OnStar’s allegedly deceptive practices.
Sources
State of Nebraska files lawsuit against General Motors and OnStar
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