Shefi Ben-Hutta
Editor at Coverager
Root Insurance

Root to Reward Safe Drivers Post Purchase

Root Insurance has announced a revised pricing model – drivers who avoid mobile device use while driving can save up to an additional 10% on their insurance quote.

“According to our recent Root for Safety study, 80% of American drivers admitted to using a mobile device while driving – an absolutely terrifying majority. If this incentive for drivers to stay focused behind the wheel helps even just a few drivers avoid accidents, then we are steps closer to making our roads safer.” – Root cofounder and CEO, Alex Timm.

Root’s platform operates through an app that uses smartphone technology and data science to understand actual driving behavior. In addition to leveraging sensors and telematics data in a smartphone, the latest iteration of the Root app can recognize unusual phone patterns such as when and how frequently someone is engaging with their smartphone while driving.

In 2017, Root began testing ways to track texting-while-driving by using the gyroscope and accelerometer within the mobile phone to identify any unusual vibration patterns that were indicative of significant cell phone use while driving. As part of its expansion program, the company began incorporating the insights into its underwriting algorithm. Since then, Root has tracked more than 1.3 billion total trips, which ensures even more accurate detection of how often people text and drive or use their phones during the initial test drive period.

“With more than a year of testing under our belts, the technology has come a long way and will continue to evolve. We collect millions of data points every second, so we’ve learned a lot about driving behavior and have been able to refine our model accordingly.” – Root Director of Telematics Data Science, Joe Plattenburg.

 

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