GEICO partners with what3words

GEICO is partnering with location technology company what3words to provide enhanced roadside assistance to customers across the US.

The London-based company’s solution is designed for situations where there’s no precise street addresses, like the side of a highway or a remote road. The solution divides the globe into a grid of 10ft x 10ft squares and gives each square a unique combination of three words: a what3words address. For example, ///usual.trying.highs marks an exact spot offering “the best view of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.”

When customers contact GEICO roadside assistance teams, they will receive a link which opens a page in the mobile browser and displays their current what3words location. Alternatively if the caller already has the free what3words app downloaded, they can share their three words with GEICO.

After trialing the technology this summer, GEICO has now started a nationwide rollout of the technology for roadside assistance customers. Once fully implemented, GEICO expects to use what3words for tens of thousands of incidents a month.

“Breaking down is stressful enough without the added frustration of trying to describe an exact location when you’re somewhere unfamiliar or without a street address. GEICO’s adoption of our technology provides customers with a simple solution for these situations, ensuring roadside assistance can always be directed to exactly where help is needed, as quickly and efficiently as possible.” – Chris Sheldrick, co-founder and CEO of what3words.

Bottom Line: Other vendors working with GEICO include Carpe Data and Tractable, according to Coverager Data.