When Romeo Chicco tried to get car insurance in December, he was turned down by seven different companies. When he finally got insurance, it was almost double the rate he was paying before. According to a federal complaint filed this week seeking class-action status, it was because the 2021 Cadillac XT6 was spying on him.
Modern cars are called “smartphones on wheels” because they are connected to the internet and packed with sensors and cameras. According to the complaint, a Liberty Mutual agent told Mr. Chicco that he had been rejected because of information in the “LexisNexis report.” LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a data broker, has traditionally tracked insurance companies on driver moving violations, prior insurance coverage and accidents.
When Mr. Chicco requested the LexisNexis file, it contained details of 258 trips he had taken in his Cadillac over the past six months. His record included the distance traveled, when the journeys started and ended, and a record of any speeding and sudden braking or acceleration. The data was provided by General Motors – the maker of his Cadillac.
In a complaint against General Motors and LexisNexis Risk Solutions filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Mr. Chicco accused the companies of violating privacy and consumer protection laws. The lawsuit follows a New York Times report that, unbeknownst to consumers, automakers have been sharing information about their driving behavior with the insurance industry, resulting in higher insurance rates for some drivers. LexisNexis Risk Solutions and another data broker called Verisk claim to have real-world driving behavior from millions of cars.
In his complaint, Mr. Chicco said he repeatedly called GM and LexisNexis to ask why his data had been collected without his consent. He was eventually told that his data had been sent through OnStar — GM’s connected services company, which is also named in the suit — and that he had enrolled in OnStar’s Smart Driver program, a feature that receives driver feedback and digital signals for good driving.
Mr. Chicco said he had not signed up for OnStar or Smart Driver, although he had downloaded MyCadillac, an app from General Motors, for his car.
“What nobody can tell me is how I signed up for it,” Mr. Chicco told The Times in an interview this month. “You can tell me how many times I speeded hard on January 30th between 6am and 8am, but you can’t tell me how I signed up for it?”
A GM spokeswoman, Malorie Lucich, previously said that customers signed up for SmartDriver in their connected car app or at the dealership, and that a clause in OnStar’s privacy statement explained that their data could be shared with “third parties.” Asked about the lawsuit, she said via email that the company is “looking into the complaint” and had no comment, pointing instead to a statement the company previously gave about OnStar Smart Driver.
“GM’s OnStar Smart Driver service is optional for customers,” the statement said. “Customer benefits include learning more about their safe driving behaviors or vehicle performance, which, with their consent, can be used to earn insurance premiums. Customers can also unsubscribe from Smart Driver at any time.”
LexisNexis Risk Solutions, which previously said it analyzed the kind of driving data Mr Chicco found in his record to create a risk score it then sold to insurers, declined to comment.
“I would never allow that data to come out,” Mr. Chicco previously said. After the lawsuit was filed, he said he had no comment.
David Vladek, a Georgetown law professor who previously ran the Federal Trade Commission’s consumer protection office, said the driving data the companies collect is considered highly sensitive, meaning there should be “clear notice.” to consumers and express consent to their collection. and sale.
Mr. Vladeck said he would expect an investigation by the FTC, as well as consumer lawsuits against automakers and data brokers.
“Just wait for the avalanche,” he said. “Comes.”
