UK Government appoints data firm Floow ‘to make car insurance smarter’

The UK government has appointed data analytics and telematics firm Floow to advise on a project to help motorists and the insurance sector “embrace new technologies” to reduce incidents on UK roads and make car insurance “smarter”.

As part of the Government backed UPLIFT project, Floow will use GPS tracking and analysis of the quality of driving (speed, road risk and driver distraction, for example) to improve how risk is understood and communicated to drivers.

UPLIFT will be led by a team of global experts in data science, driving behaviour psychology and insurance risk, who will also examine and develop bias analysis, transparency and fairness for consumers and aim to set new industry standards in ethical data handling.

By making road users more self-aware of their driving habits, the project aims to reduce the risk on UK roads.

The arrival of advanced in-car technologies, improved vehicle performance and the pervasive use of mobile phones have all driven changes in driver behaviour, not all of them for the better.

Recent Floow research showed that 72 percent of UK drivers admitted to using their mobile phone behind the wheel. But by heightening driver awareness of the risks of distraction, erratic motoring, tiredness and the dangers of driving at unsociable hours, the project is expected to deliver a “significant improvement” in road safety. It will also help reduce insurance claims with the average crash currently costing the UK economy £83,893.

UPLIFT will also work to improve how fraudulent claims are managed. In 2016, more than 215,000 fraudulent insurance claims were made in the UK valued at £1.3 billion. This has led insurers to invest at least £200 million a year to prevent fraud, according to the Association of British Insurers.

Aldo Monteforte, Floow CEO, said: “Through the UPLIFT project, we aim to define a blueprint for improving insurance products making mobility smarter and safer for all. "For some motorists, the advent of big data can be scary, but in truth the new era of safer driving and personalised risk that telematics enables is empowering for the consumer – and will result in lower and fairer insurance premiums, fewer accidents and safer roads.”

Dr Sam Chapman, chief innovation officer at Floow, added: “Our smart mobility technology has already proven that greater driver awareness results in safer driving. For example, our current driver training programme reduces the likelihood of road traffic accidents by 13 percent in the worst performing drivers.

“UPLIFT will allow us to enhance feedback for every driver to support people to become better drivers on every journey they make on any road in the UK.”

The company said its work has reduced claims frequency by 15 percent as well as the severity of accidents when they occur based on the claims reported. Through its coaching services for higher risk drivers, business said it has helped insurers to reduce accident propensity by a further 16 percent in some of the poorest performing segments of their portfolio.

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