GM to pay $220 million to settle claims it sold drivers' location and driving data

General Motors has agreed to pay $220 million to resolve a lawsuit brought by a coalition of 36 state attorneys general over the sale of consumers' location and driving-behavior data. The Record reported the settlement on October 29, 2026, describing it as one of the larger privacy actions against an automaker.

What happened

According to The Record, GM allegedly enrolled millions of people in its "Smart Driver" program between 2016 and 2024 and sold their location and driving-behavior data to outside parties, including data brokers. Those brokers then resold the information to insurers, which used it to set drivers' insurance prices. The practice was exposed by The New York Times in April 2024, and GM ended the program that year, the report says. A GM spokesperson said the agreement "addresses Smart Driver, a product we ended in 2024," per the article's wording.

What data was involved

The Record reports that insurers received detailed telematics data, including trip counts, drive start and end times, hard-braking and acceleration events, and speeding data. The complaint alleges GM told customers it would not share their data with insurers without affirmative consent, yet sold it anyway. Dealership employees allegedly received bonuses for enrolling customers, dealerships were ranked against one another on enrollment numbers, and the program was bundled with OnStar services. The filing also alleges GM wrongly told more than 370,000 customers their data was not being monitored, later unenrolled them without notice, and did not retrieve the already-collected data from brokers and insurers.

Who is affected

The settlement covers the 36 states whose attorneys general joined the coalition, which was co-led by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, according to a Washington AG press release cited by The Record. Drivers enrolled in Smart Driver during the 2016–2024 window are the primary affected group. The report notes a separate 2024 lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton remains ongoing; Texas is seeking civil penalties of up to $10,000 per offense, a jury trial, and an order requiring GM to delete the collected data.

What it means

Beyond the payment, GM agreed to significant reforms, The Record reports. The company must obtain affirmative express consent before collecting or sharing driving-behavior and location data, minimize the driving data it collects, maintain a comprehensive data-privacy program with internal and external assessments, and expand oversight and training to stop dealership staff from enrolling customers without approval. For drivers, the case is a reminder that modern connected vehicles can gather granular behavioral data; owners concerned about telematics tracking should review their vehicle's privacy settings and any connected-services enrollments.