For years auto insurance providers relied on pretty basic information they have on you when pricing your insurance. They would rely on things like age, zip code, gender, and accident/ticket history to attempt to predict your likelihood of having a claim. They use past data from clients like you to build a "risk profile". It has been somewhat helpful, but far from perfect. Just because you're a 29 year old male from Chaska doesn't mean you all drive the same, right?
Enter Telematics.
Until self-driving vehicle technology is widespread, and auto insurance is no longer needed, insurance companies want to rely on new methods of data gathering to make sure you have a more sophisticated rating model on your auto insurance. The idea is that you should be charged based on the way you drive, without leaning on the other things that you can't necessarily control.
Everyone has a connected smartphone these days, why not use it to your advantage. Insurance companies like Travelers (IntelliDrive), Safeco (Right Track), Progressive (Snapshot), State Auto (Safety 360, plug-in device), and Encompass (Route Report) have rolled out their own smartphone apps that track safe driving habits like time of day, fast acceleration, high speed, hard braking, and even distracted driving.
Insurers know that these things are among the leading causes of accidents, so if they can help you avoid this while avoiding paying big claims, they can pass some of that realized savings down to you.
While these new methods are still being perfected, it's a great opportunity to save on your auto insurance premium if you're a good driver. Insurance companies will rely more and more on this data moving forward, so it's a perfect time to start practicing safe habits.
These discounts can range from 5% all the way to 30% savings, so many will find it worthwhile to have. Though there's still some concern with the "big brother" aspect, many drivers with smart phones realize this information is already being collected and utilized by other large tech companies like Google, Apple, Facebook, and more. This date is also protected by world-class data security experts, and is confidential of course.
If you think that you'd be a good candidate for Telematics, reach out to Andrew Biscay or Mark Trudeau at 952-856-5500 or info@SouthLakeMN.com
We can talk through the specifics and see if it's a good fit for you.
Chat soon!
Andrew Biscay
President, South Lake Agency
