Distracted from Distraction by Distraction

If National Distracted Driving Awareness Month­—April—wasn’t already enough to get the attention of drivers who habitually text, mess with the radio, or eat while driving, maybe some stats will get the message across. Just this morning on the East Side in heavy traffic a woman was getting made up, talking to some one on a hands free and sipping coffee rather to my amazement. She smiled at me when she realized I was staring, the went back to her conversation. She was wide awake, for sure,  a good risk. A recent survey’s takers would not have been surprised. A host of global insurers interviewed by insurance telematics company, The Floow, told the telematics pros more than one-third of U.S.-based insurers believe that distracted driving will be one of the greatest factors leading to increased insurance premiums over the next two years, not to mention danger, death and bad mascara placement. But not everyone will feel the effects. Over the past year, a study by consulting group Ptolemus shows that there has been a 26 percent increase in the number of drivers choosing usage-based insurance policies and taking advantage of telematics technology, like the newly released FloowDrive platform.  Accessible through a mobile app, FloowDrive tracks a wide variety of driver behavior including distraction, offers a driver score, and promotes coaching to help create safer driving habits. As a result, many people are seeing decreases in their insurance premiums.“Telematics technology like the FloowDrive platform was developed with safety in mind,” said John Kramer, VP of North American Operations for The Floow. “If we can help people become safer drivers, they will be less likely to get into crashes and file claims. The added benefit is often lower insurance rates for the driver.” An increasing number of insurance companies are also offering usage-based policies, and using data collected from driver behavior to better assess risk. In the recent Floow survey with insurers, the in-car behaviors they will be most interested in having data on include texting and other distracted activities (57 percent), average speed (45 percent), level of smooth or erratic braking (42 percent), and levels of tiredness (41 percent). “Insurance companies also benefit from the rich data captured by telematics technology,” said Kramer. “The data allows insurers to more accurately price policies, learn how to enhance segmentation and ultimately improve a policyholder’s overall insurance experience.” Maybe…Pass the sugar,  please.… New York is the 41st state to approve Trov’s On-Demand Insurance format. As the first and one of the few global InsurTech based companies, they tell us, Trov’s New York office, led by our COO Sean O’Donoghue, as home base for more than a dozen employees and growing, including a majority of their Insurance Operations team working globally with a network of partners. Trov appears closer to sharing what it terms the ease and accessibility of its On-Demand Insurance with the US. Worth a look, agents.…Avoiding controversy, Former FBI Director James Comey has been selected to keynote LIMRA 2018 Annual Conference to be held Oct. 28-30, 2018, in New York City. The news was leaked—well, OK announced—by LIMRA’s  PR team just as we went to press. “Throughout his decorated career, James Comey has exhibited attributes that would make his knowledge useful on any platform,” said Robert A. Kerzner, president and CEO, LIMRA, LOMA and LL Global. “His leadership qualities, in particular, have been recognized by some of the highest level officials in the United States. We are thrilled to have him as our keynote speaker.” Appointed by President Barack Obama, Comey led the FBI from 2013 to 2017.  During his tenure, he oversaw the federal response to several mass shootings, including at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, which was the deadliest shooting in American history. He is also known for his work on border control.  A native of New York, Comey previously was a federal prosecutor in both his home state and Virginia. He also served as the U.S. deputy attorney general for the George W. Bush administration. Comey is also known to the Trump and Clinton administrations’ leaders. The LIMRA Annual Conference is one of the largest gatherings of senior executives representing diverse sectors of the financial services industry. Members and partners come together to share strategic industry insights and participate in high-level networking. The Annual Conference agenda is designed to offer attendees insights into the latest industry trends. LIMRA’s premier conference will be exceptionally special as it will be the final one for CEO Robert Kerzner, who will retire at the end of 2018 after 14 years with the company. Not to miss, for sure.