To stop an insurer from tracking your trips, first find out whether your policy is enrolled in a usage-based insurance (UBI) or telematics program, then ask the insurer how to withdraw and when collection will end. Changing app permissions or deleting the app may not cancel enrollment. If tracking comes from your car’s built-in system or automaker app, you must review those controls separately.
First, identify what is tracking your driving
“Car insurance app” can refer to different data flows. Usage-based insurance, also called telematics, may use a phone app, a plug-in device, or technology built into the vehicle to collect mileage or driving behavior for insurance pricing. The Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner describes UBI as an insurer monitoring driving behavior to determine a premium, while the National Association of Insurance Commissioners notes that mileage and behavior tracking can raise privacy concerns. Washington State OIC: Usage-based insurance; NAIC: Telematics
- Insurer app: Phone permissions may allow the app to gather location or motion/activity data as part of a program.
- Plug-in device: A unit connected to the vehicle may transmit data independently of the phone app.
- Built-in vehicle telematics: The car or automaker’s app may collect or share data through a separate system, even if you stop using the insurer app.
Check your policy documents and insurer app for terms such as “usage-based insurance,” “telematics,” “driving score,” “trip tracking,” “safe-driving program,” or “pay-per-mile.” Then ask the insurer which technology your specific policy uses. Insurers’ methods and the data they collect vary. NAIC consumer guide: Understanding usage-based insurance
How to stop insurer-app tracking without guessing
- Contact your insurer through an official support channel. Ask whether your policy is currently enrolled in telematics, which device or app collects the data, and how to withdraw. Request the date collection will stop and ask whether withdrawal changes your premium, discount, or eligibility.
- Read the program’s withdrawal terms before disabling tracking. Do not assume that deleting the app or turning off a phone permission cancels enrollment or satisfies the policy terms. UBI is a pricing approach, and the effect of leaving depends on the insurer’s program and your policy. NAIC: Telematics
- Review the insurer app’s permissions. If you are no longer participating, check the app’s location and motion/activity permissions in your phone settings. Disable permissions that are not needed, but confirm with the insurer whether this is an accepted way to stop collection. Nationwide says that, for its cited programs, collection may be stopped by deleting or changing app privacy permissions and/or turning off data sharing; that is not a universal rule for other insurers. Nationwide Consumer Privacy Policy
- Follow the insurer’s instructions for hardware. If you use a plug-in telematics unit, ask whether it must be deactivated or returned and whether removing it ends transmission. Do not dismantle a built-in vehicle system: embedded technology may not be removable. Nationwide Consumer Privacy Policy; Association of British Insurers: Telematics motor insurance consumer guide
- Get written confirmation and keep it. Save the insurer’s response and effective date. Ask what happens to data already collected, including its retention and permitted uses. There is no single deletion process established for every insurer, policy, or jurisdiction.
Compare the tracking paths and trade-offs
| Tracking path or choice | What to check | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Insurer app telematics | Enrollment terms, app permissions, and the insurer’s withdrawal process | Permission changes may stop some app collection, but timing and policy effects vary. Nationwide privacy policy |
| Plug-in telematics device | Whether the device must be deactivated or returned, and whether removal ends transmission | The unit may be removable, but follow the insurer’s instructions and confirm policy consequences. ABI consumer guide |
| Built-in vehicle telematics | Automaker privacy settings, consent controls, and data-request options | The system may not be removable; disabling data sharing can affect connected features. Maryland Insurance Administration: Telematics; Associated Press: Connected-car privacy |
| Keep UBI or choose a non-UBI policy | Your actual quote, discount, collection scope, sharing terms, and retention terms | Leaving may change pricing or a discount; the exact result requires reviewing your policy and getting a quote. NAIC consumer guide |
Check connected-car data separately
Stopping the insurer’s app does not necessarily stop data collection by your automaker, vehicle system, or automaker’s app. Review the vehicle’s privacy settings, app permissions, consent choices, and data-sharing controls; contact the automaker if you cannot tell what is being sent or how to opt out. The Maryland Insurance Administration recommends checking vehicle data collection and sharing practices and whether an opt-out is available. Maryland Insurance Administration: Telematics
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Consider the consequences before turning off connected-vehicle services. Some features may depend on shared data; the Associated Press reports that disabling connected-car location services can affect features such as roadside assistance or remote locking. Check your vehicle’s documentation or ask the automaker which features would stop working. Associated Press: One Tech Tip—Modern cars are spying on you
Regulatory actions do not create a universal opt-out guarantee. The Federal Trade Commission’s finalized January 2026 order concerns GM and OnStar specifically, with limited exceptions; it does not establish the controls available for every automaker or insurer. FTC: Finalized GM/OnStar order announcement, January 2026
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What to confirm before you finish
- Which company or device is collecting the trips: insurer app, plug-in unit, built-in system, or more than one.
- Whether your policy is formally withdrawn from telematics, and the effective date.
- Whether the change affects your premium, discount, or eligibility under your specific policy.
- Whether any app permission, device return, or automaker privacy step remains.
- What happens to previously collected data, including retention and use.
Insurance and privacy rules differ by location. The process above is U.S.-oriented; confirm the applicable terms for your state and policy. For a comparison of UBI arrangements, the NAIC consumer guide explains how these programs can be used in insurance pricing, but your insurer’s contract controls the consequences of withdrawal. NAIC consumer guide: Understanding usage-based insurance
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