UK +44 (0) 1799 533300 / US Tollfree +1-866-711-4880 sales@redtailtelematics.com

Fleet telematics case study

by | Sep, 17 2024 | Blog

Reading Time: 3 minutes

A Fleet telematics case study to consider ROI

A lot of data!  However, details of how we work with our customers to understand the benefits of a managed fleet telematics program below.

Fleet-telematics-case-study-ROI-table

A fleet management telematics solution makes savings in fuel costs, asset (people/machines) productivity, maintenance and insurance costs.

A fleet management telematics solution makes savings in fuel costs, asset (people/machines) productivity, maintenance and insurance costs.  Also, understanding of driver behaviours and coaching to improve has an impact on road safety and insurance premiums.

REDTAIL studies demonstrate evidence that driving more safely has a corollary with reducing emissions.

Collaborative relationships

Our US customer (a building and maintenance company) above is one example of a well-managed fleet.  The collaborative relationship has developed over time to better understand business and technology and areas for saving and improvement in both.  Our devices, data and apps have enabled the Operations folk to better manage their mobile teams in a couple of ways:

  • Optimise routes, schedules and tasks to best serve their customer base
  • Track driving styles and coach/incentivize employees to do better/safer/cheaper

An added benefit of the latter is a both a reduction in traffic accidents and therefore claims, plus robust driving behaviour data to enable insurers to understand risk.  Both aspects result in the possibility of lower motor insurance premiums than might be expected.

Safer driving and lower emissions

REDTAIL research into the correlation between safer driving and lower emissions offers a further incentive. 2.7kg CO2 emissions per litre is a recognised industry standard.  Our scrutiny of driving styles and behaviours indicates 12-15% saving in fuel consumption per journey of at least a mile.  This jumps up to 14-17% for longer journeys.

Again, do the math – across a busy fleet of 30 vehicles there is undoubtedly the opportunity to do differently and to ultimately make a difference.

Redtail-Telematics--telematics-and-fleet-management

Return to main Blog page

Connected Vehicle data benefits for OEMs

by | Jul, 9 2024 | Blog

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Actionable, valuable insight for insurers

REDTAIL is leading the way in turning connected vehicle data into actionable, valuable insight for insurers. In this bulletin of our thought leadership on this opportunity, we scrutinize the benefits of Connected Vehicle data for OEMs.

Connected-Car-benefits-for-insurance-premium-reduction-and-the-lower-emissions-in-environment

Connected Vehicle highlights from Redtail

• In 2019, 71% of vehicles on UK roads were connected
• The forecast is 100% by 2026
• There are 40 million cars on Britains roads

Redtail-incident-portal-screenshot

Premium

We can help you manage a pilot program with insurers to drive learning and evaluation of connected vehicle data. Our steps are practised and proven:

1) Work with insurer to identify test group of 100 (say) existing policy holders driving your brands

2) Secure permissions from those policy holders for sharing of car data

3) Work with your tech team to enable APIs, portals and apps for your team to view data

4) Regular review workshops to address progress issues and discuss learnings

5) Post pilot report with mutually agreed recommendations and next steps

EU-connected-vehicle-data-packages-table

Sample of connected vehicle datasets.

The pilot programme can be set up in a month and we suggest a minimum six months duration.

Quality Connected Vehicle data with Redtail

REDTAIL presents quality data to you through web portals and apps in flexible and readily usable formats.

As a second layer of evaluation we are adept in ingesting your innovative datasets, and help insurers explore new ways to scrutinise use cases in risk, claims and policy holder engagement.

Redtail-connected-vehicle-fleet-map-screenshot

Redtail-connected-vehicle-dashboard-screenshot-cropped

Redtail-connected-vehicle-crashboard-screenshot

How Redtail can help…

In conclusion, insurers should be doing more to utilize the benefits of OEM connected data!  As a leader in the field, Redtail can help those insurers receive standardized data from different OEMs and we are excited to see this field progress.

So, what do you say, will you join us on this journey?!

Redtail-Telematics

Return to main Blog page

Electric vehicle, connected vehicle, smart vehicle ?

by | Jun, 18 2024 | Blog

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Electric vehicles and connected vehicles – are they “smart” vehicles?

In the words of Jim Steinman and Meat Loaf, ‘Two out of three ain’t bad….’

I don’t know if you saw the recent BIBA announcement on an EV scheme with Novo Insurance.  ‘…the scheme boasts a range of unique features, including like-for-like replacement mobility in the event of a claim and access to a UK wide EV repair network.’  Ok.

Connected-Car-benefits-for-insurance-premium-reduction-and-the-lower-emissions-in-environment

High premiums for Electric Vehicle owners

The contribution from esteemed Novo MD James Allenby also promises innovation through ‘competitive rates, unique covers and customer satisfaction’ in an ‘underrepresented’ market.

In a previous article I quoted the confused.com data on very high premiums for EV drivers.  The data suggested that the size of the installed base, the newness of the immediate acceleration, early braking and quietness are additional factors.  Concluding that more accidents means more claims means higher premiums.

High-premiums-for-electric-vehicles

Electric Vehicle and Connected Vehicle data

But what if there was technology to 1) accelerate understanding of drivers and their driving in this segment and 2) inform coaching on safer driving?  Could that add pre-incident prevention to the post-claim efforts?  A few simple facts:

  • Telematics devices and data (and now Connected Vehicle data) have been enabling driver understanding and coaching for decades
  • According to Plug-and-Drive, 85%+ of EVs are connected
  • REDTAIL ingests OEM data and converts to actionable, valuable data for insurers. Insight if you will.

Redtail-Electric-Vehicles-and-Connected-Vehicle-journey-data

Electric vehicle replacement and repairs

BIBA/Novo combine on replacement vehicle and repair networks.  Will this be enough to help OEMs / insurers hit the government targets for EV adoption?

My honest answer is I do not know.  But, given the compelling eco arguments and the necessary momentum in the EV direction, why not load the dice?  Of course, permissions and tech and testing and marketing must be deployed.

However, there is a unique opportunity here – intelligent vehicles offering smart data to do better business for all – OEMs, insurers, consumers and the planet.

Electric-vehicles-and-higher-insurance-premiums

Return to main Blog page

Connected car: where and how you drive

by | May, 22 2024 | Blog

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Connected car: where you are and how you are driving

Your connected car knows where you are and how you are driving.  Your phone knows this too.  And so does Google.  Your insurance company would like to know so they can save you money on your premium – Would you let them?  Here are the benefits…

‘The two aims of the Party are to conquer the whole surface of the earth and to extinguish once and for all the possibility of independent thought’
George Orwell, 1984 (published 1949)

Connected-Car-benefits-for-insurance-premium-reduction-and-the-lower-emissions-in-environment

REDTAIL research into insurance telematics

REDTAIL conducts primary research into insurance telematics each year. One recurring theme is the feeling that consumers regard the gathering of driver data as intrusive. It is a fact of life that more and more technology is evolving to understand the needs, behaviors and aptitudes of the individual. The Market of one.

‘Permissions’ is now a word with which we are rather more familiar than just a couple of years ago. REDTAIL does not pretend to be expert on all things Apple or Google, but we do have experience and know a little about telematics data for insurers. Additionally, as stated in my last column on the Connected Vehicle subject, we are ingesting increasing amounts of that data and rendering it both actionable and valuable.

Why should you be prepared to allow data on your driving style and behaviors be shared with your insurance company? There are three reasons: premium, fuel and emissions [that eco thing].

Connected-car-benefits-for-insurance-premium

Premium

The better you drive the smaller chance of an accident and claim, and the lower your premium.  Simple, right?  Well, despite the comment on ‘individual’ above, the insurer sets premiums based on the performance of his whole book, not just you!  However, the majority of telematics (mostly black box currently) policies offer direct incentives for better driving.  REDTAIL use our/your data and help that better driving with quite specific feedback on driving behaviours, suggesting perhaps (in a charming manner!) that you drive a little less quickly into corners, for example!

Connected Car and Fuel Consumption

56 miles an hour was one of the key thresholds for fuel consumption.  Also, harsh acceleration and braking, speeding and harsh cornering all use more fuel than driving with more care and consideration.  Telematics data and advice on better driving behaviors can therefore save on fuel.

Connected-car-monitoring-fuel-emissions-and-impact-on-environment

Emissions [that eco thing]

We are also monitoring the impact of the use of fuel on the environment.  Quite simply those behaviours listed above to generate more fuel usage are less environmentally friendly than they can be.  Every instance of easier acceleration or braking uses less fuel and is therefore more eco-friendly.

GPS tracking and telematics solutions are essential tools

I would suggest that there is an opportunity for independent thought in allowing use of your driving data for good reasons: lower premium costs, save money on fuel and be kinder to the environment.  Orwell and 1984 is sometimes described as a cautionary tale.  As our world does indeed become more intent on understanding the individual and everything about them, we as more informed individuals can make smart and considered choices on which data can be used and valued and to what extent.  Telematics data from connected vehicles can undoubtedly be used for positives on the economics and the environment – surely worth considering?!

Redtail-Telematics-connected-car

Return to main Blog page

Motor insurance fraud – cash for crash

by | Apr, 16 2024 | Blog

Reading Time: 4 minutes

How much motor insurance fraud

There were 42.5k instances of motor insurance fraud in 2022. The average value of each incident was £15k.  This data was revealed by a recent ABI article.

Wow!

Types of motor insurance fraud – cash for crash

There are several types of motor insurance fraud.

So-called ‘cash for crash’ is one. Highway Code Rule 126 states that you should ‘leave enough space between you and the vehicle in front’ – meaning that the driver at the back of a collision is usually found at fault.

Criminal gangs will monitor traffic at stop-start locations (eg roundabouts, congestion areas), and those drivers or vehicles looking likely to have comprehensive motor insurance. For example, older people or mothers with children in the car.

Commercial vehicles are also targeted as deemed less likely to refute insurance claims.  They may have two cars involved, one to brake harshly in front of you, the second to tailgate to distract you.   An accident will then be staged and you will be liable.

Motor-insurance-fraud-cash-for-crash

Types of motor insurance fraud – fronting

A second type of motor insurance fraud is known as fronting.  Fronting is when a younger driver is added as the named driver on a policy but is actually the main driver of the vehicle.

Unfortunately, the pursuit of a cheaper policy could result in (or cost) the cancellation of the policy, or at least a claim refused.

Motor-insurance-fraud-fronting

Motor insurance fraud – how can telematics help?

REDTAIL claims data offers immediate and granular digital evidence of who did what to whom as well as when and where it happened.  That data is available within seconds of an incident, allowing insurers to manage claims processes with accuracy, speed and humanity.  Making the right telephone call at the right time to offer help is a vital element of customer service and positive for brand.

Secondly, we have billions of miles of driver behaviour data that offers representation on the sorts of context and driving that does lead to an incident.  Our data determines driving ‘signatures’. In particular, ways of handling a car (I do NOT drive like my kids!), that can corroborate who drives a particular vehicle the most.  We can also scrutinize driving patterns.  For example, a vehicle being close to a roundabout for extended periods, which could indicate waiting for ‘crash for cash’ victims.

Why?

In the main, insurers are not yet embracing the benefits of telematics data-based claims.

The adoption of this technology-based approach is only one part of a digital transformation strategy.  I know of three major insurers who are undergoing such a transformation.  Striving to have telematics data value understood and to get appropriate IT resources allocated.  Clearly, both the industry and sales guys like me must evangelize with power and relevance to get the message across.

Motor insurance fraud – the main points

Telematics data for claims means better data, faster data, cost-effective processes and reduction in fraud and liability.

All this = Return on investment (ROI)!

Redtail-Telematics-car-driving

Return to main Blog page