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Start with the account or app tied to your car, then check the car’s privacy settings and the automaker’s privacy notice. Look for a named usage-based insurance program, driving-score service, insurer connection, or third-party data-sharing control. A connected car does not automatically mean your driving data is going to an insurer: some services process data to provide a score while insurer sharing is a separate opt-in.
Check your car’s insurer-sharing status
- Identify the vehicle and services. Note its make, model, model year, country, connected-services account, and any driving-score or insurance program you have joined. The data and controls can depend on equipment, connectivity, software, account choices, and the vehicle’s settings.
- Open the automaker’s app or website. Sign in to the account associated with the vehicle. Look under Privacy, Data, Consent, Driving Score, Usage-Based Insurance, Insurance, or Third-Party Sharing. In Toyota’s app, the Data Privacy Portal is in the account area and lets owners review or change vehicle-data transmission preferences: Toyota Data Privacy Portal.
- Read the control’s description before changing it. Establish whether it turns off insurer sharing alone, ends a driving-score program, or disables broader connected services. These choices can have different effects.
- Check the vehicle’s own settings. Review the infotainment system’s privacy or connectivity menu and the owner’s manual. If you cannot find a model-specific control, ask the dealer or automaker support. In Ford vehicles, the route and available settings vary; another driver or profile may also have changed a setting.
- Record what you find. Save the date, the exact control name, any confirmation screen or email, and a support case number. If the account does not show current recipients or consent history, ask the automaker to confirm in writing what is being transmitted, who receives it, what consent is recorded, and how to stop insurer-facing sharing.
- Check account and driver status. For a used or shared car, verify which person is the account subscriber and whether another driver profile can change settings. Toyota warns that a sale or transfer not reported to the company can leave data associated with the account on file.
Distinguish insurer sharing from other data processing
A manufacturer or service provider may process driving information to operate connected features or calculate a driving score without sending it to an insurer. The relevant question is not simply whether the car collects data, but whether your particular account has enabled a feature that shares it with an insurer or insurance-related recipient.
Compare each vehicle or service on six points: what data is involved (for example, trips, mileage, location, driving events, or a score); who receives it (automaker, service provider, insurer, or consumer reporting agency); whether insurer sharing requires a separate opt-in; which control changes it and what else that control affects; what confirmation the account provides; and whether the notice applies to your model year and jurisdiction.
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Toyota
Toyota says its Data Privacy Portal lets owners review and change preferences for vehicle data transmissions. Its notice says Toyota may share Driving Data and Location Data with insurance companies for usage-based insurance when it has express prior consent. Toyota also describes ways to opt out of Connected Services or deactivate data transmission through the app or by contacting Toyota. Those broader actions may affect data collection beyond insurer sharing, so confirm which specific consent or service you are changing. See Toyota’s Data Privacy Portal.
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Volkswagen
For eligible DriveView users who opted in, Volkswagen says insurance-related sharing can be stopped in the myVW app at Account > Vehicle Management > DriveView by switching off “Third Party Data Sharing” and completing the unenrollment steps. Unenrolling from DriveView also ends its scores and feedback; broader myVW unenrollment may affect other services. Volkswagen’s page says the program provides driving-behavior, GPS-location, and other covered data for 20 days or until 20 trips after the insurance-sharing opt-in, unless the user opts out sooner. That timing is a DriveView program rule, not a general rule for other vehicles. See Volkswagen’s privacy information.
Kia
Kia says LexisNexis Risk Solutions receives data to generate a vehicle-based Driving Score. Kia separately says certain attributes may be shared with participating insurers if the owner enrolls in its optional Usage-Based Insurance Program. The owner can leave that program with “Leave Program” in the Kia account, but doing so does not stop the data flow used to produce Driving Score. Kia says disabling Driving Score requires contacting Kia Connect support. See Kia’s owner FAQ.
Rank #2
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Ford
Ford says what data is disclosed depends on the vehicle’s equipment, connectivity technology, features, software version, settings, connected services, and selections. Its guidance points owners to app connectivity settings, the in-car Settings menu, the manual, or a dealer for details on their specific vehicle. Do not assume one menu route applies to every Ford model year. Ford also notes that another driver or profile may affect settings. See Ford’s privacy information.
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BMW and MINI in the European Economic Area
BMW Group describes CarData as a service through which drivers can permit or revoke third-party telematics sharing and view what is stored or transferred. Its description is specifically for BMW and MINI vehicles and companies in the European Economic Area; it should not be treated as guidance for U.S. accounts. See BMW Group CarData.
Rank #3
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What to do if you cannot verify the status
- Contact the automaker through the support channel associated with your connected-services account and identify the vehicle, account, and program by name.
- Ask whether data is currently being sent to an insurer or insurance-related company, which recipient receives it, which data categories are included, and what consent or enrollment is on file.
- Ask for the exact steps to stop insurer-facing sharing and whether that change also ends a driving score or other connected feature.
- Request written confirmation of the current status and any change. Keep it with the date and support case number.
An optional VIN-based privacy report may provide an overview of an automaker’s stated data practices, but it cannot establish the current settings or consent on your individual account. AP describes Privacy4Cars’ free Vehicle Privacy Report as one such overview: AP News coverage of the Vehicle Privacy Report. Use it as background, not as a substitute for checking the automaker account or requesting confirmation.
What the FTC’s GM and OnStar order does—and does not—mean
In January 2026, the Federal Trade Commission finalized an order with General Motors and OnStar resolving agency allegations about collection, use, and sale of precise geolocation and driving-behavior data without adequate notice and affirmative consent. The FTC said the order prohibits GM from sharing certain consumer data with consumer reporting agencies for five years. The 20-year order also includes affirmative express-consent requirements for covered connected-vehicle data practices, with stated exceptions, as well as U.S. consumer rights to request and delete data, disable precise geolocation collection on equipped vehicles, and opt out of geolocation and driving-behavior collection subject to limited exceptions. This order applies to GM and OnStar; it is not a universal ban on insurer data sharing by all automakers. Read the FTC’s January 2026 announcement.
Rank #4
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- ENGINE CODE READER – This automotive diagnostic tool works with most US, Asian, and European vehicles from 1996 and newer, including Toyota, Ford, Honda, Chevrolet, Nissan, Dodge, and more. Read and erase ABS (coverage may vary) and engine trouble codes with pinpoint accuracy. Please use Innova's Coverage Checker to verify coverage.
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The FTC has also noted that connected vehicles can collect sensitive information, including location and telematics, and that how it is collected, used, and disclosed can affect privacy and financial welfare. That general concern is a reason to check the controls; it does not reveal the status of any particular car. See the FTC discussion of connected vehicles.
Country and vehicle details matter
The examples above include U.S. manufacturer services and one EEA service. Privacy rights, available features, account controls, and insurer arrangements can differ by country, model year, software, and enrollment. No general menu path can confirm the status of every vehicle. When the app, car settings, and privacy notice do not clearly answer the question, the automaker is the appropriate source to verify the account’s current recipients and consent.
Quick Recap
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