GM to pay $220 million over sale of drivers' data to brokers

General Motors has agreed to pay $220 million to settle claims from a coalition of state attorneys general that it sold drivers' driving behavior and location data to data brokers, which then sold it to insurers. The settlement, announced on October 29, 2026, also requires GM to get drivers' affirmative express consent before collecting or sharing that data. GM did not admit wrongdoing.

What happened

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, who says he helped lead the coalition, announced the settlement in a press release describing a group of 36 attorneys general: 35 states and the District of Columbia. Other attorneys general announced their own state's share the same day, including Colorado and Minnesota.

The states alleged that GM collected detailed data from connected vehicles, including how people drove and where they went, and sold it to data brokers without telling customers it would be used that way. According to the Connecticut attorney general, the OnStar app told more than 370,000 drivers they were not enrolled in GM's Smart Driver program while GM was still collecting and selling their data. Connecticut's release puts the number of affected Connecticut residents at 123,143. The states also said GM paid dealerships bonuses for enrolling customers.

Texas sued GM separately in 2024 and is not part of this settlement. California reached its own $12.75 million settlement with GM in May 2026.

What the settlement requires

These terms come from the Connecticut, Colorado and Minnesota attorneys general's announcements, linked below, and are labeled Confirmed. Details reported only by news outlets are labeled Reported.

• Payment: Confirmed. GM will pay $220 million, divided among the participating states. Reported shares include about $7.2 million for Colorado, about $12.3 million for Washington, more than $12 million for New York and more than $6 million for Connecticut.
• Consent: Confirmed. GM must get drivers' affirmative express consent before it collects or shares driving and location data. GM has said drivers who decline may have limited access to some features (Reported).
• Data limits: Confirmed. GM must run a privacy program that limits the driving data it collects and protects the personal data it holds.
• Oversight: Confirmed. An independent third party will assess GM's compliance with the privacy program. GM must also train dealerships.

The announcements reviewed for this page describe payments to the states, not payments to individual drivers. None of them describes a claim form for consumers.

What GM drivers can do now

1. Review your connected services settings. In your vehicle brand's mobile app or your OnStar account, check which data sharing features are on and turn off any you do not want.
2. Watch for official instructions only. If your state sets up any process tied to this settlement, it will come from your attorney general's office. Be wary of messages that ask for payment or account details to "claim" settlement money.
3. Ask your insurer what it uses. If your auto insurance price changed in a way you did not expect, you can ask your insurer what data sources it used to set it.
4. Use broker deletion tools where they exist. California residents can use the state's Delete Request and Opt-Out Platform (DROP) to send one deletion request to registered data brokers.

Connected-car data is different from the names and addresses that appear on people-search sites, but it can reach the same broker market. Knowing which settings send data off your car is the most direct way to limit it.