It’s common knowledge that for young drivers, car insurance can be a difficult thing to find. Even with schemes such as ‘Pass Plus’, car insurance for some young drivers can a lot of the time outweigh the cost of the car itself, making driving unfeasible.
But there may be light at the end of the tunnel with the latest trend in car technology, known as the ‘Smartbox’. The idea of the Smartbox is to track how young drivers use their car. The Smartbox aims to tackle high premiums given to young drivers by tracking each individual driver every time they use their vehicle.
The Smartbox is a small device (about the size of a mobile phone) that will track drivers via satellite. It will measure how fast you drive, how you take corners, how you break, acceleration and will also look at how long the drivers’ journeys are. Policyholders are then able to monitor all their information online. The policyholder’s information is given a rating; one (very poor) to five (excellent). Their premium is then re-calculated every 90 days. The cost of this premium will depend on the drivers’ ratings. The premise for this new piece of technology is that it will encourage younger drivers to drive safely, even when they are driving by themselves. Insurance companies using this technology will then reward this driver with a discount of around 11% on their premium. On the other hand, bad drivers may be punished by having their premiums cost up to an extra 20%.
Although the idea of the Smartbox does sound promising, there are some setbacks, as there are with most new pieces of technology. For example, the Smartbox may not understand that you are taking a sharp turn or going around a mini roundabout. Instead it may mistake this as the driver not taking corners very well, which will affect the driver’s overall rating. Also, as the Smartbox measures mileage, so those who frequently take long journeys in their car will not benefit from this.
Nevertheless, it can be an advantage for those young drivers who drive safely but are being penalised on their insurance premiums only because their peer group on average have more accidents. It may also put the parents’ minds at ease, as they have a system to where they can visually asses their children’s’ driving behaviours anytime.
First impressions from young drivers regarding this new piece of technology are mixed. Many don’t like the idea of being monitored, believing that it takes away the ‘freedom’ that many feel when they first pass their test. Others also believe that good drivers that make mistakes from time to time may also be unfairly judged as a bad driver. But those who believe they are safe drivers feel that it’s about time they were rewarded for their good driving behaviour, rather than being judged on their peer group.
The advice for teens at the moment however is to shop around. As this new technology may sound good on paper, it may not benefit all drivers. Also in many cases, companies that use the Smartbox technology were not the cheapest option.
It will however be interesting to see how this new technology will affect the market and the way in which young people drive, or if it will be seen as just another gimmick.
If you’re a young driver and want to sort out your car insurance right away, visit eCar, an online insurance solution that will let you manage your car insurance whenever is suitable for you. As well as annual car insurance, we provide short term car insurance from 1 to 28 days and monthly car insurance in the form of a flexible Pay As You Go car insurance policy.
Visit eInsurance Group for your insurance needs
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