Last Updated on December 10, 2025

When you file a car insurance claim, your insurer may ask for a lot of information – photos, repair estimates, medical bills, and sometimes even your phone records. Requests like this can feel invasive, so it’s important to know what your rights and obligations are.

Can insurance companies check your phone records? Do you have to give them over if they ask? Below, we’ll walk through why insurers sometimes want phone records, when you can say no, and when you may be legally required to provide them.

Key Takeaways

1. Car insurance companies can request your phone records during a claim investigation, but they can’t usually access them directly without your consent or a legal order.
2. Before a lawsuit, you can choose to provide, refuse, or narrow the scope of any phone-record request, though refusing entirely may slow or complicate your claim.
3. If a lawsuit is filed and a court issues a subpoena or order, you may be legally required to provide phone records from specific dates and times.
4. If your insurer is denying or stalling your claim based on phone records, you can talk with an attorney and/or file a complaint with your state insurance department for help.

Why Car Insurance Companies Ask for Phone Records

Car insurance companies may ask for phone records after a claim has been filed for a few main reasons. In most cases, it’s because the insurer believes there may have been some type of wrongdoing or needs more evidence to sort out fault.

Common reasons they request phone records include:

• Suspected distracted driving – The insurer thinks you may have been texting, calling, or using data at the time of the crash (which could make you at fault).
• Possible insurance fraud – The company believes the accident or claim details don’t add up and wants to verify where you were or what you were doing.
• Conflicting stories – The other driver, a witness, or a police report suggests phone use, and the insurer wants to confirm or dispute that information.

Phone records are just one type of evidence insurers can use during a claim investigation, similar to repair estimates, photos, or medical records. Insurers are allowed to investigate claims, but they don’t automatically get access to your phone data without your cooperation or a legal order.

Can Car Insurance Companies Check My Phone Records on Their Own?

Generally, no, your car insurance company cannot simply “pull” your phone records on its own. Your phone records are usually held by your phone carrier, and carriers typically require either:

• Your consent/authorization, or
• A valid legal order (such as a subpoena or court order)

Without one of those, an insurer can’t just log in and see who you called or texted. What they can do is request that you provide a copy of your records or sign a release allowing them to obtain specific logs from your carrier.

What to Do When Your Insurer Asks for Phone Records

If your car insurance company asks you for phone records and a lawsuit has not been filed, you generally have three options. Remember that your policy also includes a “duty to cooperate” with investigations, so completely refusing to cooperate may affect how your claim is handled. If you’re unsure, consider speaking with an attorney before deciding.

Option 1: Provide the Records

If you know you weren’t using your phone at the time of the accident and you’re comfortable sharing, you may decide to simply provide the records your insurer is requesting. Doing so can:

• Help resolve questions about fault
• Speed up the processing of your claim
• Show that you’re cooperating with the investigation

When possible, download records yourself from your phone provider so you can see what you’re sending and ensure it only includes the time period requested.

Option 2: Refuse to Provide the Records

You usually do not have to provide your phone records just because the insurance company asks for them. If you feel the request is unreasonable, overly broad, or too invasive, you can refuse and insist that they process your claim based on other available evidence.

However, be aware of potential consequences:

• The insurer may delay the claim while they decide how to proceed.
• They may take a harder line on fault if they believe you’re hiding something.
• In extreme cases, they might deny the claim if they feel you’re not cooperating as required by your policy.

If your insurer refuses to move forward without records and you believe they’re being unreasonable, you may want to speak with an attorney or your state insurance department.

Option 3: Ask for a Narrower Request

If you’re not worried about the company finding wrongdoing but think their request is too broad, you can ask them to narrow it down. For example, you could say you’re willing to provide records only from the date and time of the accident, rather than an entire month or longer.

This compromise lets you cooperate while protecting more of your privacy. You can explain to the adjuster that you’ll provide any records that are truly relevant, but not unnecessary personal information.

When You Can Be Forced to Provide Phone Records

There are situations in which you may ultimately have no choice but to provide phone records. This usually happens when a claim escalates into a legal dispute.

If a lawsuit has been filed against you or the insurance company, your phone records may be:

• Requested during discovery – Attorneys on either side can request certain records to build their case.
• Subpoenaed by a court – A judge can issue an order requiring you (or your phone carrier) to provide records from specific dates and times.

When a valid subpoena or court order is issued, you generally must comply. As the article on documenting damage and gathering evidence for a claim explains, evidence rules are different once a case is in litigation.

What If Your Claim Is Denied Because of Phone Records?

If your claim is being denied because of phone records – either records showing you were using your phone or because you refused to provide them – you may still have options.

Insurance companies are required by law to act in good faith. That generally means they must:

• Investigate claims reasonably and promptly
• Not deny claims without a legitimate reason
• Be clear and honest about why they’re denying or delaying payment

If you suspect that your car insurance company is trying to get out of paying your claim without a fair basis, you can take action.

Talk to an Attorney

If the company is acting in bad faith, refusing to pay, or making unreasonable demands, you can sue them to get your damages covered. Many lawyers who handle insurance bad faith cases work on a contingency basis, meaning you don’t pay anything upfront and the attorney is paid only if you win or settle.

Contact Your State Insurance Department

Another option is to report the insurer to your state’s insurance department or commission. Every state has an agency that oversees insurance companies and enforces consumer protection laws.

If your insurer is unreasonably denying or delaying your claim, the state department can:

• Review your complaint
• Ask the company to explain its actions
• Push the insurer to pay valid claims or correct unfair behavior

FAQs on Insurance Companies Requesting Phone Records

Final Word

The bottom line is that your car insurance company can request your phone records as part of a claim investigation, but in most routine claim situations, you’re not automatically obligated to hand them over. Before a lawsuit, you can choose to provide the records, refuse, or negotiate a narrower request.

Once a lawsuit is filed and a court issues a valid subpoena or order, you may be legally required to provide phone records from specific dates and times.

If you feel your insurer is being unreasonable, dragging out your claim, or using phone records as an excuse to avoid paying, consider speaking with an attorney and/or filing a complaint with your state insurance department. Even if your claim is eventually paid, you may want to compare quotes and consider switching to a company that’s easier to work with in the future.