Sheffield, United Kingdom, Thursday 6th May 2021: Global telematics leader The Floow announced today that it has expanded further its partnership with Direct Line Group (“DLG”) with the launch of a smartphone app-only version of its telematics insurance offering, DrivePlus.
Available through the Direct Line brand and initially launched in 2014, DrivePlus was originally a black box proposition, installed in cars to monitor driving performance and reward safer drivers with premium discounts on renewal of their insurance policy.
The app-only version represents a game-changing evolution in DLG’s Connected Insurance offering, turning a driver’s smartphone into a telematics device and promoting a mobile-first, fully digital experience. It is designed to increase road safety and make insurance more affordable for young drivers. Telematics drivers can potentially save around 20% on a new policy.
The DrivePlus app runs on the FloowDrive platform and takes data from a driver’s smartphone, scores that data and then presents it back to the user in the DrivePlus app. For eligible customers, this means that there is no requirement for a black box to be fitted in their vehicle.
The launch of the DrivePlus app-only proposition is the latest development in the partnership between DLG and The Floow as they strive to make driving safer and smarter following the 2020 launch of DriveXpert on DLG’s Privilege brand, and the launch of DriveSure on DLG’s Churchill brand earlier in the year.
David James, The Floow Chief Operating Officer, said:
“We are committed to enable Connected Insurance products based on a superb, mobile-centric experience and to place our motor insurance partners at the forefront of data technology so that both insurers and policyholders get the best out of their policies.
“Using a smartphone for data collection is just as accurate as using a black box and as smartphones are more cost-effective, this widens the potential reach of telematics technology.
“We have developed an excellent relationship with Direct Line Group since we started working together in 2012, and this enhancement to the DrivePlus proposition is further testament to our collective desire to provide the best insurance cover to drivers, and positively influence safer driver behaviours.”
Nancy Tsanti, Telematics Product Manager at Direct Line, said:
“The main benefits that we deliver revolve around the ease of telematics – the ‘Download and Drive’ principle – where there is no hassle around fitting a black box and all journeys, whether long or short, are captured automatically by the driver’s smartphone.
“Our ongoing relationship with The Floow has allowed Direct Line to continue to reduce telematics costs and return value to customers by way of lower motor insurance premiums.
With reduced telematics costs as well as the capture of additional information relating to driving behaviour, such as mobile phone distraction, further opportunities arise to introduce telematics products to a wider audience and enable novel applications and services.”
The app-only version of DrivePlus follows the launch of the first pure app-only telematics insurance initiative in the UK market, DriveXpert, in August 2020 which saw DLG become the first UK insurer to use an app-only Telematics proposition on its Privilege brand.
ENDS
Notes for Editors:
About The Floow
Based in Sheffield in the UK and California in the U.S., The Floow is a leading telematics service provider built on the mission to make mobility safer and smarter for everyone.
We do this by delivering Connected Insurance solutions to motor insurers that:
- Improve their ability to assess risks through a suite of behavioural scores that are highly predictive of claims propensity and improve risk differentiation compared to traditional risk models.
- Reduce operating costs by engaging drivers to help them improve their performance and turning them into partners in risk prevention, preventing fraud and delivering on timely FNOL
- Collect data from smartphones as well as most other sensing devices in an agnostic fashion
Over the years, The Floow has been recognised with a number of awards including the Made in Sheffield Mark, named Winner of Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards, recipient of the Queen’s Enterprise Award (Innovation) for 2016, Winner of Red Herring 100 in 2017 and recipient of DIAmond Award in 2017.
Our FloowDrive product was named Best Smarter Travel Innovation at the Smarter Travel Awards and The Floow was named winner of the Technology Innovation in the European Usage-based Insurance Industry from Frost & Sullivan in 2018, Winner of the Insurance Times Tech and Innovation Data Analytics Excellence Award in 2019 and our FloowCoach programme was named Private Sector Initiative of the Year at the 2020 Young Driver Focus Awards
For more information please visit: www.thefloow.com
About Direct Line Group
Direct Line Group is headquartered in Bromley. Through its number of well-known brands the Group offers a wide range of general insurance products to consumers. These brands include Direct Line, Churchill and Privilege.
The Group also provides insurance services for third parties through its partnerships division, Direct Line Group Partnerships. In the commercial sector, the Group’s NIG and Direct Line for Business operations offer insurance products for businesses distributed through brokers or direct, respectively.
PR Contacts for The Floow
Roddy Langley
Lysander PR Limited
07547 901 618
Helen Wright
Lysander PR Limited
07842 729 579
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