Insurer revs up black-box trial

Norwich Union is to monitor more vehicles in tests to determine Pay as You Drive insurance premiums

Norwich Union is planning a major increase in its Pay As You Drive car insurance trials, after purchasing more satellite tracking systems.

The insurance company is testing the in-car tracking system with 5,000 drivers aged between 18 and 21 years, and has now purchased a further 35,000 telematic devices from IT supplier Trafficmaster.

The trial is to be extended to include 18- to 65-year-olds. Drivers involved in the trial will have black-box devices installed in their vehicles, using global positioning systems to calculate insurance premiums based on how frequently and where they drive.

‘By increasing the number of boxes in our pilot, we will have additional data to help ensure that future Pay As You Drive insurance propositions are best suited to British motorists,’ said Simon Machell, chief executive of Norwich Union Insurance.

If driver trials prove successful, Norwich Union may decide to launch a usage-based insurance scheme, which takes into account whether people drive at peak times or on accident black-spot roads.

By travelling on less risky roads and at quieter times, motorists could reduce insurance premiums and receive charges on a monthly basis.

The pilot has recorded more than 42 million miles of data from 10 million journeys and is helping Norwich Union more accurately assess insurance risks.

Results of the trial – which first began in 2004 – also show that participants are driving 2,500 miles less than the yearly national average.

A spokesman for Norwich Union told Computing that the scheme may also act as an incentive for motorists to rely less on their vehicles when travelling short distances to the shops or taking children to school.

‘At this stage it’s a pilot. We need to get a stronger understanding for Pay As You Drive and the data we collect before launching the product,’ he said.

The Department for Transport is also looking at the use of car tracking s ystems by private sector organisations to see if it can be incorporated into a national road pricing scheme (Computing, 10 November).

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