Will the Introduction of Telemetric Driving Data Recorders Result in Cheaper Truck Insurance?
There appears to be a number of hauliers and couriers using black box type recording equipment to combat insurance fraud. With fraud rising 70% in the last three years according to Sky News, the technology seems to be predominantly used at the moment for settling insurance claims. Some insurers are giving away free recorders with insurance policies. But does this mean that drivers that use this technology will benefit from cheaper truck insurance? I suppose it ultimately depends on the risk and whether or not the risk of a claim is reduced by using this technology.
The technology includes wide angle video recording that is constantly recording during the journey. Once capacity is reached on the memory storage media, the technology overwrites the earliest recorded data. Upon impact the technology saves a period of footage before and after the impact and marks it as read only. This prevents it from being overwritten if the technology is reused. Some brands include a “panic” button that initiates this procedure even if there is no impact. This could be used for minor collisions that do not trigger this save procedure.
The technology also records a number of telemetric pieces of driving data including the speed of the vehicle, the breaking strength and time and the overall driving time. This information is also automatically saved upon impact and can be used, along with the video footage, to draw a picture of what happened moments before and after a collision.
One argument might be that the introduction of this technology would not reduce the chance of an accident happening, but reduce false or fraudulent insurance claims being made. Upon impact the technology, which is constantly recording, saves a section of footage and data a few minutes before and after an incident. Having this information as evidence would support or challenge any claim made, ensuring that any insurance claims made are genuine. This could reduce the loss ratio insurance companies experience through the elimination of false or fraudulent insurance claims.
However it can also be argued that drivers that know they are being monitored telemetrically for speed and driving style may adopt a more careful approach to driving. In the event of an accident, owners of the vehicle may request copies of the footage and if the driving style is found to contravene company policy, the driver may find themselves in some form of disciplinary proceedings. If this technology results in improved driving, surly the chance of an accident taking place is going to be reduced.
If we can prove that this technology reduces the risk of a claim and claims that are made fraudulently are reduced. Insurance companies should expect a lower loss ratio. This should then lead to a reduction in premium and ultimately cheaper truck insurance.
