Allstate has launched Drivewise Mobile, a usage-based insurance application for smartphones, and Star Driver, a smartphone-based tool intended to identify and teach safe driving behaviors to young drivers.
The Drivewise Mobile app collects a driver’s speed, time of day and hard braking events along their route and is currently available to customers in Montana, New Hampshire and Nebraska. The mobile telematics functionality is expected to roll out in additional states throughout the course of the year, Allstate said.
Star Driver, available to Allstate customers across the United States, empowers parents and their teenage drivers to focus on safe driving, Allstate said. The app offers a driving agreement between parents and their teens to establish expectations and parameters for driving behavior. Parents and teens agree on limits for where, when and how fast the teen is allowed to drive, and can alert parents via text or email if the teen violates those parameters.
“It’s one of a number of programs we have that focus on helping teens be safer; it’s really important to us because it’s really important to our customers,” said Steve Sorenson, Allstate’s EVP of product operations and spokesperson for its teen safe driving advocacy. “We are trying to get connected to our customers and it’s not just about savings. Saving is important but we want to go beyond that and start offering value-added services, so that customers can experience convenience and other forms of value than just getting a discount on their insurance,” Sorenson said.
Star Driver is based on Allstate’s Drivewise telematics platform and is a function within the Drivewise Mobile app, but Star Driver participants need not be enrolled in the Drivewise program. Star Driver offers parents an objective view of how their teen is driving to facilitate conversations by validating good driving behavior and highlighting areas for improvement. Star Driver also reinforces good driving behavior by awarding points and badges for staying within the bounds of their agreement and encourages safe driving with savings on auto insurance, Allstate said.
“Through offerings such as Drivewise and Star Driver, Allstate is leveraging technology and connecting consumers to bring out the good in their lives and protect what matters most,” said Pete Corrigan, SVP of Allstate Technology and Operations.
Star Driver and Drivewise Mobile are part of Allstate’s connected consumer strategy; the Drivewise telematics program is now in 39 states and the District of Columbia, the company said. To date, Drivewise customers have driven nearly 3 billion miles in more than 110 million hours on the road. Allstate customers can download the Drivewise Mobile app from Google Play and the iTunes App Store.
