Class Action Accuses Toyota of Illegally Sharing Drivers' Data

'A federal class action lawsuit filed this week in Texas accused Toyota and an affiliated telematics aggregator of unlawfully collecting drivers' information and then selling that data to Progressive,' reports Insurance Journal:
The lawsuit alleges that Toyota and Connected Analytic Services (CAS) collected vast amounts of vehicle data, including location, speed, direction, braking and swerving/cornering events, and then shared that information with Progressive's Snapshot data sharing program. The class action seeks an award of damages, including actual, nominal, consequential damages, and punitive, and an order prohibiting further collection of drivers' location and vehicle data.
Florida man Philip Siefke had bought a new Toyota RAV4 XLE in 2021 'equipped with a telematics device that can track and collect driving data,' according to the article. But when he tried to sign up for insurance from Progressive, 'a background pop-up window appeared, notifying Siefke that Progressive was already in possession of his driving data, the lawsuit says. A Progressive customer service representative explained to Siefke over the phone that the carrier had obtained his driving data from tracking technology installed in his RAV4.' (Toyota told him later he'd unknowingly signed up for a 'trial' of the data sharing, and had failed to opt out.)

The lawsuit alleges Toyota never provided Siefke with any sort of notice that the car manufacture would share his driving data with third parties... The lawsuit says class members suffered actual injury from having their driving data collected and sold to third parties including, but not limited to, damage to and diminution in the value of their driving data, violation of their privacy rights, [and] the likelihood of future theft of their driving data.

The telemetry device 'can reportedly gather information about location, fuel levels, the odometer, speed, tire pressure, window status, and seatbelt status,' notes CarScoop.com. 'In January, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton started an investigation into Toyota, Ford, Hyundai, and FCA...'

According to plaintiff Philip Siefke from Eagle Lake, Florida, Toyota, Progressive, and Connected Analytic Services collect data that can contribute to a 'potential discount' on the auto insurance of owners. However, it can also cause insurance premiums to be jacked up.

The plaintiff's lawyer issued a press release:

Despite Toyota claiming it does not share data without the express consent of customers, Toyota may have unknowingly signed up customers for 'trials' of sharing customer driving data without providing any sort of notice to them. Moreover, according to the lawsuit, Toyota represented through its app that it was not collecting customer data even though it was, in fact, gathering and selling customer information. We are actively investigating whether Toyota, CAS, or related entities may have violated state and federal laws by selling this highly sensitive data without adequate disclosure or consent...

If you purchased a Toyota vehicle and have since seen your auto insurance rates increase (or been denied coverage), or have reason to believe your driving data has been sold, please contact us today or visit our website at classactionlawyers.com/toyota-tracking.


On his YouTube channel, consumer protection attorney Steve Lehto shared a related experience he had — before realizing he wasn't alone. 'I've heard that story from so many people who said 'Yeah, I I bought a brand new car and the salesman was showing me how to set everything up, and during the setup process he clicked Yes on something.' Who knows what you just clicked on?!'

Thanks to long-time Slashdot reader sinij for sharing the news.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.