Skip to main content

Aviva looks to iPhone app to cut the cost of motor insurance

Major UK insurance company Aviva is said to be experimenting with an iPhone app that will offer discounts on car insurance based on customer's driving speed and style, according to reports in the Daily Telegraph newspaper.
March 19, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Major UK insurance company 4075 Aviva is said to be experimenting with an iPhone app that will offer discounts on car insurance based on customer's driving speed and style, according to reports in the 4076 Daily Telegraph newspaper.

The app will use telematics technology to monitor a driver's behaviour by using data transmitted from a Smartbox, which is fitted to the policyholder's car, via satellite. It will measure motorists' mileage, the time they drive, and how they drive.

Motorists are then penalised for sudden braking or cornering via a black box installed in the dashboard of the car. The concept behind this insurance is simple: by encouraging careful driving, some motorists will see their premiums fall, while those who do not drive as safely will see the cost increase.

Head of Aviva UK, Trevor Matthews, is quoted as telling City AM, "We're experimenting with an app right now that you put in your car and tells you all sorts of things. It could be available later in the year. But clearly there's a bit of a problem with a phone-based app because it might not be in your car."

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Innovative diesel-electric bulldozer
    July 12, 2012
    With the launch of its innovative D7E diesel-electric bulldozer, Caterpillar has shaken up this traditionally conservative market Only rarely do product innovations come to market that can truly be described as groundbreaking, but Caterpillar's D7E fits that bill. To understand the giant leap that the D7E represents, it is important to recognise Caterpillar's long history in the bulldozer market, which is unmatched by any of its rivals. Caterpillar pioneered the crawler track with founder, Ben Holt, havin
  • Drivers sceptical of EU vehicle control safety benefits, claims IAM research
    October 28, 2013
    Three quarters of UK drivers are concerned that the use of Intelligent Speed Adaptations (ISAs) will compromise safety, according to research by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM). Last month, the EU announced that they were considering rules for new cars to be installed with Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA) technology. The technology would be capable of detecting limits through cameras or satellites and automatically applying the brakes. Existing vehicles could be forced to be retrofitted with
  • Trimble’s vision of a far more efficient future
    July 5, 2021
    Trimble is offering a future with more efficient, optimised construction operations for faster project delivery
  • Zipping up road lanes
    September 28, 2018
    QMB has a Lindsay Road Zipper on duty near Montreal. World Highways deputy editor David Arminas climbed aboard As vice president of Canadian barrier specialist QMB, based in Laval, Quebec, Marc-Andre Seguin is sanguine about the future for moveable barriers. On the one hand, it looks good. The oft-stated advantage of moveable barriers is that the systems are cheaper to install than adding a lane or two to a highway or bridge. Directional changes to lanes can boost volume on a road without disrupting tra