Mercedes-Benz Uses Location Tracking for Car Repossession

Photo: PCMAG

Mercedes-Benz is using an unorthodox approach to making sure customers keep up on their car payments: tracking vehicle location in the event it needs to be repossessed.

According to UK newspaper The Sun, Mercedes-Benz has been fitting sensors inside new and used vehicles, which can pinpoint their exact whereabouts. That information can then be shared with bailiffs and third-party recovery firms.

Mercedes-Benz, which is owned by Daimler AG, hasn't gone into details about the location sensors. Nevertheless, the automaker said tracking can occur in rare circumstances after a customer agrees to finance a car through Mercedes-Benz's financial services.

"In this case, they sign a contract and agree to the use of the car's location in the event they default or breach their finance agreement," a Mercedes-Benz spokesperson told PCMag. In addition, all customers are made aware of the repossession process and how location tracking can be involved.

"This repossession process is used in a few exceptional cases and only as a last resort, when customers default or breach their finance agreement and repeatedly fail requests to return their vehicle," the spokesperson said. "We also want to emphasize that this does not mean constant tracking."

Still, it raises some questions about potential surveillance of customers. So far, Mercedes-Benz hasn't elaborated on whether all company cars have been fitted with the tracking technology. 

But the automaker's spokesperson and the brand's privacy policies do note that Mercedes-Benz will collect customers' vehicle location to power certain features like navigation or emergency services.

"We place great importance on the responsible and transparent use of customer data. The customer determines which services he wants to use and which data he wants to pass on —either by consent, by contract or at the push of a button," the automaker's spokesperson said.

According to Mercedes-Benz's privacy policies, you can opt out of the tracking, but it requires contacting the automaker or deactivating the affected services.

SOURCE: PCMAG