09:11 AM
Allstate Introduces App for Usage-Based Insurance
Northbrook, Ill.-based Allstate has released an iPhone and Android app for policyholders enrolled in its Drivewise usage-based insurance program.
The app provides near real-time updates on driving habits using data from the onboard telematics device required for program enrollment. The information had been and remains available through a web portal. In addition to tips on improving driving, both portals indicate how adoption of certain driving habits could impact a policyholders' potential discount. The average Drivewise user saves 14% off his or her premium, according to Allstate.
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"This provides our customers a method to quickly identify ways to improve their driving and, at the same time, be rewarded for safe driving habits," Allstate senior product VP Ed Biemer says in a statement. "We know Drivewise can create a safer, more self-aware driver, and it remains our goal to offer usage-based insurance to as many of our customers as possible so we can encourage safer driving and pass along a significant discount for it."
In addition to the mobile app, Allstate announced that Drivewise is available in six more states, bringing the total number of states in which it can be sold up to 16. New market entrants are Missouri, Indiana, Minnesota, Maryland, Utah, and Washington. Usage-based insurance is gaining popularity rapidly among auto carriers, with recent research from SMA indicating that 70% are planning or have implemented some form of it.
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Nathan Golia is senior editor of Insurance & Technology. He joined the publication in 2010 as associate editor and covers all aspects of the nexus between insurance and information technology, including mobility, distribution, core systems, customer interaction, and risk ... View Full Bio