Telematics cuts young driver casualties by 35%

Telematics has played a role in reducing insurance costs for young drivers as it has cut casualties by more than a third since 2011, LexisNexis Risk Solutions reports.

Car casualty rates amongst 17-19 year old drivers have fallen by 35%, compared to 16% for the driving population as a whole. 

The one major difference between young drivers and their older counterparts is telematics insurance, with four in five young drivers estimated to have a telematics policy today. 

This is the first time road casualty statistics have been analysed in direct relation to the exponential growth in telematics policies since 2011 with 975,000 live policies in 2017, suggesting telematics insurance has done more to cut accident risk than other road safety initiatives aimed at the young driver market. 

The 35% reduction in road casualty rates in 17-19 year olds is despite the 10% increase in the number of vehicles on the road (2011-2016) and a 7% increase in the number of driving licences held across all ages since 2012.   

LexisNexis Risk Solutions’ director of global telematics Graham Gordon said: “This analysis is vitally important. 

"It helps validate the sector’s significant investment in the proposition by providing firm evidence of the role of telematics in cutting claims losses whilst improving the market’s ability to offer insurance to the most risky drivers on our roads. 

"But most importantly it reveals the mass market potential for telematics, to help arrest the recent rise in road casualties in the wider motoring population and enable the market to truly realise its investment in telematics.

“The cost of offering telematics has fallen dramatically for the insurance sector – we estimate data acquisition costs have fallen by as much as 50% since 2013. 

"At the same time our research shows that consumer confidence in telematics and willingness to use this type of insurance with four in five people comfortable with the idea of telematics insurance.

“With such a growing body of evidence showing that telematics is having a direct impact on cutting road accidents and thereby claims costs, combined with the fall in costs for the sector, the evolution of telematics insurance with products for each customer segment is already well underway."