AUTO and home insurance provider Allstate is being blasted by drivers who allege the company illegally tracked them through their cellphones.
Allstate customers involved in the suit have received the green light to proceed with a proposedclass action lawsuit against the insurer.
The proposed class action specifically claims that the insurer tracked drivers’ cell phone activity without their consent and used thecollected datato raise premiums or deny coverage.
Drivers also allege that Allstate sold this data,known as telematicsin the insurance industry, to other insurers.
The claims have been brought by a man named Demetric Sims, named as the primary plaintiff in court documents, and 37 others.
US District Judge Jeremy Daniel in Chicago ruled that drivers in the proposed suit can try to prove that Allstate monitored their travel locations, trip distances, speed, acceleration, braking, phone usage, and attention to the road, thusviolating the Federal Wiretap Act.
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Drivers allege the data was collected through apps powered by data analytics unit Arity, which they also assert inaccurately reported their driving behavior, such as when they rode as passengers.
The complaint claims Arity’s tracking software was integrated into popular driving apps, including Fuel Rewards, GasBuddy,Life360, and Routely, which is owned by Allstate.
Source: Drudge Report
