A recently filed class action lawsuit alleges Toyota Motor North America, Progressive Insurance and data firm Connected Analytic Services have unlawfully collected and shared personal driving data from vehicles equipped with tracking technology, without the knowledge or consent of the vehicle owners.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, the lawsuit centers on vehicles manufactured by Toyota from model year 2018 onward. Plaintiff Philip Siefke, a Florida resident who owns a 2021 Toyota RAV4 XLE, claims the automaker's tracking systems collect extensive data such as location, speed, acceleration, braking behavior, voice commands and even call logs, which are then shared or sold to third parties like Progressive Insurance.
According to the complaint, “tens of thousands” of Toyota owners across the U.S. may have been impacted by what the lawsuit describes as the unauthorized surveillance and monetization of driver behavior.
Siefke’s attorneys argue Toyota’s own privacy disclosures promise customer consent is required before sharing such data.
Progressive is also named in the complaint for allegedly obtaining and using real-time driver behavior data through its Snapshot program. This program claims to monitor metrics such as nighttime driving, hard braking and phone usage via a mobile app to adjust insurance rates.
However, the lawsuit states: “While Progressive represents that the consent of an owner of a Toyota vehicle is required before having Driving Data shared with Progressive, this representation is untrue.”
The class action cites a 2023 Mozilla Foundation report that found automakers are increasingly focusing on monetizing data instead of solely selling vehicles. Mozilla warned, “There’s probably no other product that can collect as much information about what you do, where you go, what you say, and even how you move your body […] than your car.”
In addition to behavioral data, the lawsuit claims Toyota gathers non-personal vehicle metrics like fuel efficiency and engine performance but combines them with identifiable information such as GPS routes, music preferences and phone contacts.
The complaint asserts that if Toyota drivers had been properly informed of the extent of this data tracking and sharing, they would not have paid the prices they did for their vehicles. As such, the plaintiffs are seeking damages and injunctive relief.
The legal action, Philip Siefke v. Toyota Motor North America, Inc., et al., is being led by Morgan & Morgan Complex Litigation Group and Steckler Wayne & Love PLLC.
