Telematics-based pay-as-you-drive insurer Coverbox has added a significant senior player to its management team as it prepares for the launch of its new behavioural insurance product.
Martin Williams, 44, joins as Chief Operating Officer from Capita Insurance Distribution where he was Business Development Director. He previously held senior management positions in a number of leading insurance industry businesses.
Martin joins shortly after www.coverbox.co.uk revealed to selected insurers and re-insurers the findings of a massive in-depth research project which provides compelling evidence that the industry will have no option but to completely review the way it sets insurance premium rates.
“Business decisions are made by analysing and interpreting the most recent and most accurate information - Coverbox commissioned actuaries to produce a report which has assessed the behaviour of tens of thousands of drivers since 2009, and that report has indicated we’re on the verge of a revolution in the way we insure drivers,” said Martin Williams.
“Our new behavioural product operates through an interactive device which is several generations of technology on from the ‘black box’ –based systems. There’s a great deal of talk about ‘black box’ and telematics insurance products at the moment – they’re good, but those on the market are based on current and recent technology and parameters; our product might be termed ‘Telematics 2.0’; it’s a natural progression, but more advanced and accurate, and will become the foundation for the majority of telematics-based vehicle insurance products,” said Martin.
“The Coverbox behavioural product is not just next-generation, but is also based on much more robust and extensive driving behaviour research – something of which we are certain, because only we have the data. It is well-known in the insurance industry that our product will become the definitive.
"What the research has revealed is that there's an overwhelming case for changing the way the insurance industry sets premiums: we record, analyse and compare driving behaviour as against applying insurance 'proxy ratings', which is the established approach, and, arguably, perhaps outdated; we get factual driving information, and base rates on driving style and location of vehicle rather than lifestyle and home address.
"While there is no doubt current real-time driver behaviour information out there, the vast majority of it cannot be set against a behavioural baseline which means premium rates may be set too high or too low. Our baseline is set against billions of lines of data collected pretty well since the introduction of telematics into the insurance industry.
"The report illustrates that both insurers and drivers will be better off if insurance is rated on driving style rather than lifestyle, and that good drivers don't suffer from the behaviour of bad drivers. Insurers and re-insurers alike recognise the value of our data."
Coverbox has offices in Billingham, Peterborough and Portsmouth, which will be overseen by Martin Williams. Martin will work closely with Coverbox deputy chairman Johan van der Merwe, who led the acquisition of the business earlier in 2012.
Coverbox pay-as-you-drive insurance allows drivers to take out comprehensive cover paid for by the mile, with the price per mile varying according to the time of the day or night: off-peak, peak or "super-peak" times.
All Coverbox policyholders have a personal website enabling them to see precisely how many miles they are driving, and what the cost is. The technology behind Coverbox is based on proven equipment and technology.
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