The death of the telematics device – but the future is bright for Redtail Telematics

REDTAIL has been spending a lot of time wedged between car manufacturers and insurers of late.  It is an interesting place to be.

Redtail, telematics devices and innovation

As many of you know, REDTAIL was born out of Plextek Group. Innovating in Stolen Vehicle Tracking with Tracker, Lojack and CalAmp, as well as Usage-Based Insurance with Ingenie, Admiral and ByMiles.  Currently, well, innovation with Connected Vehicle.

Throughout, our reputation as a quality provider of telematics devices has held fast, especially as we control all aspects: form factor, ergonomics and firmware.  Also, connectivity, platform and portals, APIs, data science and Apps!  But now we can see a time when the telematics box will be superseded by data available directly from the vehicle and its OEM.  So back to that interesting place to be…

Telematics – data that revolutionises

Telematics data has promised to revolutionise risk and claims for a long time.  Cost and experience of a box has limited mass-market scale.    The automotive OEMs are trying to understand their play in the monetisation of Connected Vehicle Data.  The insurers are seeking to understand how vehicle data can benefit risk and claims and loss ratios.  And that is where we come in.

REDTAIL is entirely telematics device or vehicle agnostic when ingesting data.  That data is not limited to the typical four UBI parameters.  Instead, our data can manage both insurance and diagnostic datasets to enable new opportunities.  What we do is present that OEM Connected Vehicle data in a way that is immediately familiar, actionable and valuable to the insurer.

To date, we have started with the familiar, but are working on PoCs to scrutinise the value of other datasets – precise timing of airbag release, for example, innovation.  And momentum is growing, more insurers, more OEMs!

So, why is the future bright?

Our DNA is sensors, signals and data.  We know you need action and value.  Connected Vehicle data is providing more sensors, more signals and more data.  And we are convinced that we can play an important role in innovating and delivering that data to your needs.  Exciting times!

Redtail found and CEO, Dr Colin Smithers, won the latest BERU contest

Redtail’s founder, Colin Smithers, has had interest in wireless technology since childhood. It started with a bewildered fascination into the invisible radio waves that surround and pass through us. By age 12, Colin was transmitting on home modified equipment to his friends in the locality, albeit underage and so without a licence (hence illegal). Colin took his radio amateurs’ exam at the earliest legal age of 14 and shortly after started participating in amateur radio contests. Eventually, a younger school chum, named Gary Hinson, joined him in the hobby and in the sport of radio contesting.

A bit about these contests:

• Organised nationally or internationally
• Take place over a fixed period of time
• Across one or more short wave bands
• Points gained for contacting as many stations as possible in the allocated time
• Some are speech but this one is morse code
• The normal radio propagation mode used is by reflecting waves off the ionosphere but some more esoteric contests involve bouncing waves off meteor trails or even the moon

British Empire Radio Union (BERU)

One of the first, named BERU (standing for British Empire Radio Union) started in 1931. The BERU contest involves contacts across the entire geography and using five short wave bands. Contestants use the different propagation of each and as it changes from day to night and back. Originally, it lasted a week(!). Luckily, this was shortened to just 24-hours and has changed its name to the more PC ‘Commonwealth Contest’. A recent patron was Prince Philip and who wrote to it as recently as 2017 lauding its success and longevity.

Some years ago and now living in New Zealand, ‘young’ Gary jibed “I thought you’d be winning these by now, Col?”. Incentivised by this poke in the ribs, Colin has finally gained top spot and winning the Senior Rose Bowl, the first time by a Brit in a decade (well done Colin!). The trophy, donated in 1931 and  fabricated from solid Sterling Silver, is engraved with many famous names in the ham world. Being competitive in this event involved much practice and travelling to Grand Cayman for the better propagation round the Commonwealth that is enjoyed there, plus having to master the extensive club station. Young Gary still takes part and was contacted on several of the bands.

The power of positive thought!

If you are interested in learning more about the BERU contest, you can read more about it in Reflections in a rosebowl on the BERU website.

Telematics and the year ahead…

A belated but genuine Happy New year – all best wishes to you and yours for a healthy and prosperous 2023.  Please forgive me for being a little self-indulgent in offering a few personal reflections how the year might shape up from a business perspective.

Stolen vehicle recovery

There is no sign of a let-up in instances of car theft. REDTAIL has a strong track record in this space through a 30-year relationship with LoJack, Tracker and now CalAmp. In 2022 alone, Redtail Telematics customer Tracker UK recovered 488 vehicles at a total value of £11.8 million.

There are a number of factors influencing our future vision for products and services.  Our customers have identified demand at the OEM line fit level which we are fulfilling initially with a well-known German manufacturer.  This is combined with the second need, which is an increasingly robust and complex police computer.

Our joined-up technology will enable the swiftest and most secure recovery capability yet, and we look forward to launching that technology in both the UK and European territories.

Usage Based Insurance (UBI)

A few months ago, I wrote an article titled ‘the tipping point’.  Telematics-based insurance has promised for many years to be the future of motor but has remained confined (in the main) to young drivers paying thousands to justify the cost of the black box.  In the last couple of years, not least prompted by a pandemic-driven clamour for ‘fairer’ car insurance, pay by the mile policies have seen unprecedented growth.  This proposition is undoubtedly at top of mind for new incumbents to UBI, for reasons of cost, simplicity, and consumer appetite.  By Miles in the UK and KOBA in Australia are certainly leading the way in this area.

A second aspect to look forward to is our well received App’n’Tag proposition, which reduces the ‘black box’ cost by some 80% and also offers a simple consumer experience for immediate use.

These two initiatives may lead us a little closer to the tipping point.  However, the last innovation I will comment on is perhaps the bigger initiative…

Connected Vehicle data for UBI

REDTAIL has been appointed Reseller of Connected Vehicle data for UBI for Ford Europe.  We said a lot about this in mid-2022 and have continued to evolve our view of this opportunity for both OEMs and Insurers.  In the next twelve months, I expect that a couple of narratives will develop:

1. The data platforms will be found out: they need IoT insurtechs like REDTAIL to turn their junk food data into value for insurers.
2. We will continue to explore the diverse datasets available from Auto OEMs, deploying a proof-of-concept approach to help insurers and their actuaries, propositions and claims teams scrutinise sample data and discern value.
3. We will continue to work with OEMs to help them understand the size of the opportunity and their positioning within it, the technology roadmap to embrace, and not least, the commercial models available.

So REDTAIL has much to do!

We remain committed to innovating with and beyond customer needs to grow existing and new sales. Furthermore, REDTAIL continues to lead in telematics in all aspects, from black boxes and their descendants to insightful analytics, data platforms and apps.

Looking forward to 2023!

Happy New Year 2023 from Redtail Telematics!  In particular, we wish you health, happiness and prosperity in 2023 and beyond.

Happy New Year for 2023!

Seasons greetings from all of us here at Redtail Telematics.

Seasons greetings from Redtail Telematics!

The year 2022 has been an interesting year.  As a result of the world opening up again, people have started reconnecting.

Drivers have started getting tested once more; the supply chain has been to the moon and is slowly starting to return, drivers’ fuel and repair costs have skyrocketed and vehicles too are getting connected!

It was lovely to see so many attending The Future of Insurance conference US, The Motor and Mobility conference, The Future of Insurance conference EU and SEMA.  The team at Redtail looks forward to attending more events in 2023 and beyond.  Hopefully, we’ll see you there!

Redtail feels privileged to be partnering with By Miles and KOBA as they lead the way with pay-per-mile car insurance

Recently, working from home has become much more “the norm”.  Consequently, consumers started looking for alternatives to traditional car insurance.  Pay-by-mile car insurance (such as By Miles in the UK and KOBA in Australia) has really started to take off.  Redtail feels privileged to be partnering with By Miles and KOBA as they lead the way in this field.

A tag we supply is shipping to tier-1 OEMs in multiple countries and our App and Tag option for UBI has been involved in multiple successful pilot programs.  Indeed, it is an excellent alternative for insurers who don’t want to use “traditional” black box car insurance.  In case you didn’t know, Redtail’s tag connects to your phone for data recording.  Therefore, you don’t need a black box and no installer is required.

Successful Connected Vehicle pilot with Ford

With the successful completion of a Connected Vehicle pilot with Ford, Redtail and Ford are moving forward to rolling out at scale.  Connected Vehicle looks to be the future and we are excited to be at the forefront of it.  With Redtail’s services, turning any OEM Connected Vehicle data into consumable data by the insurer has never been easier.

Redtail continues to strive to be “the driving force behind vehicle intelligence”

We were also excited to be announced the Best Telematics Solutions Provider by Insurance Post this month.  An achievement we feel great pride in.  Receiving recognition for the hard work we put in to ensure our customers receive the best high-quality products and services, from our in-house black box devices doing edge computing, to our incident classification wallboard that is used as a workflow system in claims rooms, all the way through to expert witness work where we have been active again this year.

Finally, seasons greetings and a prosperous New Year from us all here at Redtail Telematics!