Allstate Sued By Texas For Allegedly Collecting Drivers’ Data Illegally

Image via Allstate

Allstate has been sued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for allegedly collecting and selling drivers’ data. This topic has been hot, thanks in part to an explosive report last year which blew the top off GM collecting and selling drivers’ data, a practice which is done by a number of companies.

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People are tired of their insurance rates being jacked sky-high. While there are likely several factors driving that trend, the lawsuit filed by Paxton’s office alleges data captured by Allstate might have led to insurance premium hikes for consumers. He also alleges Allstate has been a huge player in the brokering of driver data, keeping what he claims is the “world’s largest driving behavior database.”

Another claim in the lawsuit is that phone apps like Fuel Rewards, Life360, and GasBuddy harvest driver data, which is then sold on the market, reports Fox 5. Arity, a subsidiary of Allstate, embeds software into those apps, allowing the company to capture vehicle speed, braking, acceleration, and location data in real time. It can even detect if a user texts while driving.

Apparently, if you go into the different apps’ settings you can opt out of your data being sent to a third party, in this case Arity. However, we wonder how many people even know their driving data is being harvested by these apps.

With the response from the story about GM harvesting driving data and selling it to insurance companies, a practice it very publicly ended after fierce public backlash, we somehow doubt consumers have a favorable opinion of the practice.

Allstate issued a statement to Fox 5 in response to the news of the lawsuit by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton: “Arity helps consumers get the most accurate auto insurance price after they consent in a simple and transparent way that fully complies with all laws and regulations.”

Image via Allstate

By Steven Symes

Steven Symes is an accomplished automotive journalist with a passion for all things related to cars. His extensive knowledge and love for the automotive world shine through in his writing, which covers a diverse range of topics.

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