Co-op Young Driver Insurance has rewarded policyholders over £11.8m since it launched in 2011
Since it launched in 2011, Co-op Insurance has given back over £11.8m to its Young Driver policyholders for driving well over the average policy lifetime.
Young driver policyholders, aged 17-25, have clocked up over 820 million miles driving since the insurer launched the first mainstream telematics policy back in March 2011 – amounting to 48,000,000 hours of driving.
Latest data from Co-op Insurance has found that on average its Young Driver policyholders receive £140 back in their pockets over the average policy lifetime.
The Young Driver Insurance policy works by rewarding policyholders for safe driving and Co-op was one of the first mainstream insurance providers to bring telematics to the mainstream market. It prices discounts based on four factors:
Speed – keeping within limits
Acceleration and Breaking – not accelerating/ breaking suddenly
Cornering – driving in a controlled manner around corners
Time of driving – certain times can be risker to drive at
Conversely, policyholders who drive badly may also see an increase in their premium policy price.
Co-op Insurance was also the first insurer to offer young drivers safe driving education modules which they can access online to refresh their knowledge.
James Hillon, director of products at Co-op Insurance, said: "These are challenging times for young drivers when it comes to insurance due to changes by the Government in the Personal Injury discount rate and the level of Insurance Premium Tax, both of which disproportionately affect young drivers and are likely to hit them hard when it comes to cost.
“These added pressures are a risk to a generation of drivers who may be unable to obtain insurance easily, which could have a detrimental impact on their ability to work, or even lead them to drive uninsured which is not something we want to see happen.
“In the current climate, telematics policies could likely become more attractive to young drivers who are keen to keep their costs down. Indeed, ‘pay how you drive policies’ could be an ideal choice for young drivers who can prove they are safe and then benefit from reduced premiums as a result. However insurers can only go so far and more needs to be done to safeguard this group of drivers for years to come.
“At the Co-op we believe that helping young drivers to adopt safer driving habits as soon as possible is key to ensuring the UK’s roads, and the communities they run through, are safer in years to come. Giving consistent driving feedback, especially when somebody has recently passed their test, is a really good way to help driving styles improve sooner, rather than later.”
Young drivers can download the Co-op Young Driver app on iPhone and android device before they take out a policy. If they drive well enough, drivers could receive a discount of up to 20% off the initial policy price they would have been quoted had they not used the App. This is a great way for young drivers to try the app, before committing to taking out a policy.