Driving In Rain Could Make Your Insurance Go Up Due To New In-Car Tech

Drivers who regularly take their car out in bad weather could see their insurance premiums go up, thanks to new in-car technology.

A black box device is being used by an increasing number of insurance firms in order to track people’s driving habits.

Factors such as speed, braking and acceleration are recorded in order to produce a risk profile for insurers.

The technology is increasingly taking into account other risk factors such as the weather, meaning that those who regularly take their car out in bad conditions could be penalised with higher insurance costs.

However, drivers can also save a substantial amount - up to 30% - if they are proven to have good driving habits.

The Weather Company, a U.S.-based version of the UK’s Met Office, recently teamed up with Octo, the world’s biggest provider of in-car ‘telematics’, in order to record driving conditions for insurance purposes.

Telematics refers to a range of data, including GPS location as well as the times at which drivers are out in their cars. Most serious accidents happen late at night or early in the morning.

This kind of usage-based insurance, where tariffs are customised according to the policyholder’s driving patterns and even the weather, are set to become more commonplace in future.

According to SMA (Strategy Meets Action) research, 36% of all car insurers are expected to use telematics by 2020.

Image credit: National Motor Museum/REX Shutterstock