According to an article in the Sun Sentinel, The auto insurance arm of travel club wants customers to download a smartphone app and let the company track their driving habits. The app is meant to rate drivers on their smoothness, speed, distraction, time of day and fatigue by capturing the start and end times of each journey, acceleration rates, and GPS location information. According to Auto Club South Insurance Company, drivers can earn up to 30 percent off of their car insurance premiums. The AAA says its program, called AAADrive, is one of the first smartphone-based driver monitoring products approved by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation.
Bottom Line: First question, are you OK with allowing AAA or anyone they potentially partner with to have comprehensive data about what’s happening when you’re behind the wheel? If it saved you about $330 per year would you feel differently?
First here are the five things the AAA’s new Drive app tracks:
- Stay smooth. AAADrive can detect harsh braking and erratic speed changes. Keeping calm and steady behind the wheel will help improve your driving score.
- Don’t speed. AAADrive measures how well you drive at certain speeds. Tip: Exceeding 80 mph will reduce your score no matter how smoothly you’re driving.
- Avoid distractions. AAADrive can tell how long you’re on a call when driving and can detect movement of your phone to tell if you’re using it for texting, dialing or emailing. Your best bet? Put it down.
- Watch the clock. Some times of day are more dangerous for drivers than others, such as rush hour. If it’s possible to avoid driving during those times of day, it can help your score.
- Rest up. AAADrive calculates the time you spend driving on long journeys when you could become fatigued. Take breaks often to stay refreshed and to up your score.
Some of that info really could be beneficial to you, the biggest question is how much you care about it being out there for others to use. Clearly, it’s highly valuable data to them. The average Florida auto insurance premium is $1,098. The potential for a maximum savings is $329. They wouldn’t be providing that type of a discount opportunity just for the heck of it. So back to the question. How much do you want for your info behind the wheel?
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