Industry insight: Insurance telematics

UBI pricing: Reality or fantasy? Part I

Do insurance companies really have enough driving data to justify pricing and risk rating for usage-based insurance? Or are they guesstimating? In the first of a two-part series, Susan Kuchinskas investigates.

UBI pricing: Reality or fantasy? Part II

Do insurance companies really have enough driving data to justify pricing and risk rating for usage-based insurance? Or are they guesstimating? In the second of a two-part series, Susan Kuchinskas investigates.

Insurance Telematics Europe 2014: Day One

Siegfried Mortkowitz reports on the first day of Insurance Telematics Europe 2014, a two-day Telematics Update conference in London.

Insurance Telematics Europe 2014: Day Two

Siegfried Mortkowitz reports on the second day of Insurance Telematics Europe 2014, a two-day Telematics Update conference in London.

Insurance telematics in Europe: The tipping point is near, part I
Historically, the European insurance telematics market existed mainly in countries plagued with insurance fraud, car theft and high insurance costs. But experts say all that is about to change. In the first of a two-part series, Brendan McNally reports on what is expected to happen.

Insurance telematics in Europe: The tipping point is near, part II
Historically, the European insurance telematics market existed mainly in countries plagued with insurance fraud, car theft and high insurance costs. But experts say all that is about to change. In the second of a two-part series, Brendan McNally reports on what is expected to happen.

Saskatchewan UBI program targets motorcyclists
In Saskatchewan, the state is tapping insurance telematics to bring down motorcycle accidents. Telematics Update’s Brendan McNally has the story.

UBI and the changing role of Canada’s independent brokers
By nearly every estimate, 2014 will be the year insurance telematics (UBI) will disrupt nearly every segment of the Canadian insurance industry. Nowhere will this be more strongly felt than among Canada’s independent insurance brokers. Brendan McNally reports.

Insurance telematics makes its initial beachhead in Canada, part I
Telematics promises to be a game changer in the Canadian auto insurance industry, but it’s early days and challenges abound. In the first of a two-part series, Brendan McNally reports.

Insurance telematics makes its initial beachhead in Canada, part II
Telematics promises to be a game changer in the Canadian auto insurance industry, but it’s early days and challenges abound. In the second of a two-part series, Brendan McNally reports.

Insurance telematics: Increase consumer awareness with savvy marketing

In order to reach reach mass-market status, providers of insurance telematics must make better use of digital channels. Jessica Royer Ocken reports.

UBI in Europe: How to win consumers and influence policymakers
Insurance telematics is gaining traction in Europe – particularly Italy and the U.K. The technology is there – but what are the developments in the regulatory and legal framework? And what about consumer confidence? Christine Whitehouse investigates.

Insurance Telematics USA 2013: UBI for take-off
Jan Stojaspal takes stock ahead of Telematics Update’s largest ever conference devoted to insurance telematics.

Insurance Telematics USA 2013: Day One
Jan Stojaspal reports on the first day of Insurance Telematics USA 2013, Telematics Update’s largest ever conference devoted to insurance telematics.

Insurance Telematics USA 2013: Day Two
Jan Stojaspal reports on the second day of Insurance Telematics USA 2013, Telematics Update’s largest ever conference devoted to insurance telematics.

Insurance telematics business models: Beyond the discount

A growing number of auto insurers is looking beyond the discount in anticipation of usage-based insurance (UBI) becoming mainstream. Jessica Royer Ocken reports.

Selling insurance telematics to commercial fleets 

Jessica Royer Ocken argues that making the commercial sale should be as much about selling insurance cover as about big-picture risk management to mitigate uninsured losses.

OEMs and insurers: Time for an open relationship?

The rise of usage-based insurance fuels concerns that car manufacturers will try to hijack the auto insurance business. Frances Perraudin reports.

Insurance telematics and the gender ruling

The exclusion of gender from information that European insurers can use to assess a driver’s risk is expected to boost the use of insurance telematics. But it’s hardly the only factor driving the industry forward. Frances Perraudin reports.

Telematics and the business case for UBI

Jessica Royer Ocken weighs the costs and benefits of launching usage-based insurance (UBI) programs

Telematics and customized UBI business models

Susan Kuchinskas looks at open niches within the lucrative UBI space

Telematics, IP litigation and the UBI market

Will intellectual property fights stifle the usage-based insurance market? Susan Kuchinskas reports

Insurance telematics and data standards

Susan Kuchinskas checks in with the Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development (ACORD) to find out how standards for driving information and its transmission could create an aftermarket for usage-based insurance data

Telematics, data privacy and UBI

Susan Kuchinskas looks at how insurance telematics providers can anonymize usage-based insurance data to reassure consumers—and bolster the market

Insurance telematics in Brazil

Andrew Tolve reports on the challenges and opportunities involved in introducing usage-based insurance in Brazil

Insurance telematics and the fleet sector

Greg Nichols explores how insurance companies are expanding the services they offer to fleet operators

Telematics and UBI challenges for insurers

Greg Nichols reports on the challenges facing insurers when choosing telematics usage-based insurance solutions

Telematics and eco-friendly driving

How can green telematics solutions contribute toward more environmentally friendly driving behavior? Jessica Royer Ocken finds out

Fleet telematics: Creating synergies with the insurance industry

Siegfried Mortkowitz explores how telematics can form an important element of effective risk management for fleets

Q&A: Progressive on UBI – keeping it simple
David Pratt, general manager, usage-based insurance, Progressive, on the importance to keep things simple when it comes to usage-based insurance (UBI).

Q&A: Insurers harness big data to better serve commercial fleets
Angelique Magi, vice president for strategic initiatives at The Guarantee Company of North America, on how insurers can use big data to move beyond simple operational benefits

Q&A: How to generate revenue with insurance telematics

Blair Currie, vice president of marketing at IMS, talks to Susan Kuchinskas about how the insurance telematics industry can find viable business models

Q&A: Telematics, UBI, and the connected vehicle

Independent consultant Christopher Wilson on why usage-based insurance will be the commercial driver for connected vehicle deployment models for the near future

Insurance telematics: US state regulators tackle UBI

Susan Kuchinskas explains how insurance telematics vendors can align themselves with various US state regulators to give their solutions the best growth potential

California taps the brakes on insurance telematics

Susan Kuchinskas looks at how US state law can hinder insurance telematics

Telematics and legal issues with V2V technology

Cars that communicate with each other are already on the road. Susan Kuchinskas looks at Nevada’s new regulations for insight into how the V2V legal and regulatory infrastructure can be developed

Smartphones as an incentive for insurance telematics

Andrew Tolve explains how smartphones could help make the insurance telematics model work

Consumers and UBI: The power of value-added services

Jessica Royer Ocken explores how value-added telematics services are promoting acceptance of usage-based insurance

Insurance telematics and the “marketplace of motivators”

Robin Harbage, director at Towers Watson, talks to TU’s Andrew Tolve about why molding driver behavior is a ‘must’ for usage-based-insurance

Telematics, UBI, and driver education

Nate Bryer, Allstate’s usage-based insurance (UBI) general manager, talks to Andrew Tolve about why educating drivers is key to the success of insurance telematics

Telematics and UBI: How to increase consumer acceptance

John Hendel reports on how insurers are looking to enhance consumer acceptance of usage-based insurance

Insurance telematics and the value of data

Susan Kuchinskas looks at how fleets, auto manufacturers and telcos can make sense of the data flowing from connected cars

Telematics and UBI: The data challenges

Usage-based insurance needs to reach higher levels of market penetration for sustainable success. Jessica Royer Ocken explores how data collection and management strategies can help

Telematics and the value of data

Susan Kuchinskas explores what it will take to turn the wealth of telematics information into profitable data

Telematics: How positive customer relationships improve ROI

Stephanie Flores explores how telematics data is increasingly being used as a marketing tool

Telematics and probe data: The revenue opportunities

Stephanie Flores investigates whether probe data will offer new sources of revenue as well as solutions to traffic congestion

Telematics: Using marketing partnerships to build brands

Susan Kuchinskas looks at how marketing partnerships can help companies connect with consumers

Insurance telematics in the US: Ready to grow?

Andrew Tolve explores why usage-based insurance is poised for growth in the US, despite low consumer awareness

Telematics, regulation and driver distraction

As in-car connectivity increases, the debate about driver distraction is heating up. Andrew Tolve reports

DOT’s distraction guidelines as challenge and opportunity

Andrew Tolve reports on the telematics industry’s response to the new distraction guidelines from the U.S. Department of Transportation

What DOT’s new distraction guidelines mean for telematics

Andrew Tolve outlines the new distraction guidelines from the U.S. Department of Transportation

Distraction guidelines as a telematics business opportunity

Andrew Tolve explores how government distracted driving regulations can be a boon for telematics

Telematics and UBI: The regulatory opportunities

John Hendel explores how US federal and state regulations can help create new business opportunities for usage-based insurance

Telematics and privacy: The impact of ‘do not track’ proposals

Jerri-Lynn Scofield explores what the US Do Not Track Online Act could mean for the telematics industry

Insurance telematics: Understanding the UK market

Andrew Tolve reports on the growing demand for insurance telematics in the UK

Telematics in Brazil: Ensuring security for cars and cargo

John Hendel reports on how, in Latin America’s security-driven market, vehicle and asset safety offers competitive advantage

Executive viewpoints

Video: iMetrik on the diversifaction of insurance telematics
Vincent Pavero, director, products & innovation, iMetrik on moving from a single-device, single-platform UBI model to using multiple devices for gathering data and also multiple ways to display it.

Q&A: The Floow’s take on smartphone UBI
Andrew Goldby, chief product officer at The Floow, on improving smartphone-based UBI to rival black-box solutions.

Q&A: The Co-operative Insurance on telematics data and pricing accuracy
Grant Mitchell, chief actuary, general insurance, The Co-operative Insurance, on using telematics data to ensure pricing accuracy.

Q&A: Autoline on smartphone-based UBI and value beyond discounts
Caroline Currie, sales director, Autoline Insurance Group, on smartphone-based insurance telematics and adding value beyond premium discounts.

Q&A: CGI on UBI, Big Data and a platform-agnostic approach
Jamie Rodgers, vice president, Insurance Information Services, CGI, on integrating real-time driving behavior data with policy and claims records, and what new products and services can come out of it.

Q&A: CSIO on efforts to standardize UBI telematics data in North America
Hans Gantzkow, senior architect and analyst at the Center for Study of Insurance Operations (CSIO), on efforts to establish a common North American telematics data standard and how the insurance industry can benefit.

Q&A: The challenges to selling – and delivering – UBI products
Jon Inquimboy, product manager for Esurance, on helping UBI customers figure out what to do with that telematics box that arrives at their doorstep.

Q&A: CoverHound on comparison shopping for UBI
Basil Enan, founder and chairman, CoverHound, a San Francisco-based online insurance comparison platform, on the need to bring price transparency and consistency to shopping for insurance telematics.

Q&A: UBI – What does the consumer really think?
Roosevelt C. Mosley, Jr., principal and consulting actuary with Pinnacle Actuarial Resources, on the social media research his company has been conducting around usage-based insurance (UBI).

Q&A: UBI and the transformation of Canada’s auto insurance
George Cooke, a special advisor to the CEO of Intelligent Mechatronic Systems (IMS), on the impact that telematics and usage-based insurance (UBI) are expected to have on the Canadian auto insurance sector.

Q&A: To standardize or not to standardize insurance telematics data
James Bielak, program manager, property & casualty, ACORD, on developing a workable data standard for usage-based insurance (UBI).

Q&A: Adding value to commercial-lines insurance with telematics
Chris Parker, specialty auto consultant and assistant vice president for product underwriting, Zurich North America, on the difference in approach to personal-lines and commercial-lines telematics insurance products.

Q&A: American Family Insurance on starting a UBI product from scratch
Pete Frey, program manager for UBI solutions, American Family Insurance, on jumping into the fray of telematics and struggling to figure out what the customer wants.

Q&A: To regulate or not to regulate insurance telematics

Bob Passmore, senior director of personal lines at the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI), on whether insurance telematics needs government regulation.

Viewpoint: How to ensure correct reporting of low-level car crashes
Black box recorders are widely used by insurance companies and road accident investigators to assess major car crashes. However, the technology has not been able to accurately determine what has occurred in low-level crashes – until now. Wayne Gilbert, CTO, Risk Technology, explains.

Podcast: Making the business case for insurance telematics
Jonathan Hewett, chief marketing officer for Octo Telematics, on using data and standard business methodologies to identify the opportunities and challenges in telematics.

Viewpoint: Black box versus smartphone in insurance telematics
Greg McGarry, managing director, DriveProfiler (Ireland), explores the filpside of using smartphones as driver-monitoring devices in insurance telematics.

Video: Making driving scores cool to your drivers
Caroline Currie, sales director, Autoline, on being the first in Europe with a smartphone insurance telematics app, smartphones versus black boxes, and appealing to young drivers.

Q&A: Insurance telematics and intellectual property
Dave Pratt, general manager for usage-based insurance at Progressive, on patenting UBI, licensing competition and the way forward for the auto insurance industry.

Video: Holistic approach to insurance telematics
George Ayres, VP of global sales, Verizon Telematics, on the coming toghether of Verizon Communications and Hughes Telematics, and the importance of caring for everything around the car.

Video: Insurance telematics and the young U.K. driver
Ed Rochfort, product director and co-founder, Carrot, on targeting the brand-new driver segment of the auto insurance market in the United Kingdom.

Video: Insurance telematics and real-time driver feedback
Thomas Becher, VP business development, TomTom Business Solutions, on working with (and not against) the driver when designing insurance telematics that include real-time feedback.

Video: The tipping point for insurance telematics in Europe
Ofir Eyal, principal, The Boston Consulting Group, on the need for a country-by-country approach when implementing insurance telematics in Europe.

Video: Getting insurnace telematics right

Paul Middle, head of telematics, RSA Group, on learning through trial and error how to build an insurance telematics product that sells.

M2M UBI solutions and the rise of collaborative business models

Jürgen Hase, vice president of M2M Competence Center, Deutsche Telekom, on the role of mobile network operators in taking usage-based insurance mass market.

Video: Learning to walk before running with insurance telematics

Johan Strydom, consulting, pricing actuary, The Actuarial Consultants, on the importance to consider usage and environmental factors before wading into the complexities of driver behavior, and how it affects insurance risk.

Video: Insurance telematics and the customer-centric approach

Andrea Jurkic, head of marketing strategy, insurance development, Generali Group, on using insurance telematics to build a one-to-one relationship with the customer.

Video: Insurance telematics and the smartphone

Manjit Rana of Ingenin on designing an insurance telematics proposition to fit the smartphone.

Q&A: Telematics, young drivers and UBI

Crispin Moger, managing director of the Marmalade Group of Companies, on targeting usage-based insurance to an underserved audience

Viewpoint: Telematics and fair insurance premiums for drivers

Richard Jelbert, product director, MyDrive Solutions, explores the different methods of data analysis available for insurers in order to extract the most accurate data and in turn offer premiums that best reflect driver risk

Is there a future for usage-based insurance?

Roger Lanctot, Associate Director, Strategy Analytics, on why comprehensive affinity programs are needed to make UBI mainstream

Q&A: Why insurance telematics laggards may lose out

Frederic Bruneteau, managing director of consultancy Ptolemus Group, on the business imperatives of insurance telematics

Allstate: “Ushering in a new era of auto insurance”

TU catches up with Nate Bryer, usage based insurance general manager at Allstate, about the insurance telematics field and Allstate’s DriveWise solution

MyDrive: UBI and the need forcontext-sensitive measurement

Linden Holliday, CEO of MyDrive Solutions, insists that understanding how each insured driver conforms to safe driving benchmarks is critical if insurance companies are to get the right premiums and minimize risk

Telematics: Implications and opportunities for auto insurers

Jamie Yoder, principal, PwC’s Diamond Advisory Services, on how telematics can redefine the carrier-customer relationship

GMAC: Insurance telematics can “provide significant segmentation and pricing advantages”

TU talks to Dave Huber, vice president insurance telematics, GMAC, about how carriers with telematics-based products can become more profitable than the rest of the industry

AAA: Insurance Telematics pilots “are breaking new ground”

TU talks to Diane Dull, project manager, AAA Northern California, Nevada & Utah, about the challenges and opportunities of launching insurance telematics pilots

Numerex: “Proven market expertise and strong partnerships” key for insurance telematics

TU talks to Richard Burtner, general manager and vice president of the LBS Group, Numerex, about how M2M providers can seize the insurance telematics opportunity

Aviva: Overcoming the “greatest challenge” for insurance telematics

TU catches up with Nigel Bartram, motor underwriting strategy manager at Aviva, to discuss the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities in the insurance telematics market

Telenor: The value of “proactive service awareness”

TU catches up with Rémi Demerlé, global partnerships director at Telenor Connexion, to discuss insurance telematics and why service should be integral to offerings

Telit: “Delivering the right product at the right time”

Cyril Zeller, senior sales director of the global telematics segment at Telit Wireless Solutions, discusses telematics opportunities and challenges in the insurance space

Zurich: “In-vehicle driver behaviour technology is a fundamental component”

Andy Price, practice leader, motor fleet at Zurich Risk Engineering, discusses managing road risk and whether or not driver behavior technology is an essential ingredient for the insurance industry

SpeedGauge: “What insurer wouldn’t want to know that?”

TU talks to Jonathan Hubbard, CEO and co-founder of SpeedGauge, about improving driver behavior and reducing risk through insurance telematics solutions

Trimble: Telematics is “a vital component in the insurance market space”

TU talks to Kevin Henderson, general manager of data services at Trimble, about the rise and importance of insurance telematics in the fleet space

MyDrive: The One-Second-Data Doctrine

Linden Holliday, CEO of MyDrive Solutions, discusses the need for granularity in the insurance telematics space