USAA SafePilot program

[cbo111]

Anybody sign up for the USAA SafePilot program for auto insurance? It appears to be a phone app that tracks your driving habits.

 

[MuirWannabe]

Yes, my whole family has been using it for close to 9 months now. Rewahoo actually brought it to my attention. Nice discounts.

 

[REWahoo]

I'm into my second year on the program. Nice discount, saving me roughly $750/yr.

 

[Dash man]

We’ve been using it for a couple of years now. Love the discount. DW rants every time she gets a harsh breaking for stopping at a stoplight.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

I use it and am generally happy with the app but I have to recharacterize quite a few trips. Biking and flying (in airplane mode) have resulted in "trips" that look pretty funny on a map. Most annoying is it will often flag phone handling when stopped at a security gate/checkpoint that I need to show a pass on my phone (airport prepaid parking for instance).

 

[braumeister]

I'm not using this. My understanding is there is "up to 10%" off for participating, and "up to 30%" off based on performance.

So that would be several hundred bucks if we got the max discount. Still, taking a hit for touching your phone, even dealing with hands-free phone calls, is not very friendly, and their interpretation of "harsh braking" may not always be realistic.

Drivers should be aware that, because the mobile app follows you as the driver rather than the car, USAA will know your location at virtually all times. The company shares this data with its third-party partners to serve your policy and improve its services.

 

[REWahoo]

I'm not using this. My understanding is there is "up to 10%" off for participating, and "up to 30%" off based on performance.

So that would be several hundred bucks if we got the max discount. Still, taking a hit for touching your phone, even dealing with hands-free phone calls, is not very friendly, and their interpretation of "harsh braking" may not always be realistic.

My experience:

The discount is applied to your premiums as your policy is renewed each 6 months. We started on the program about three months into my renewal period and they had limited info on our driving habits at renewal time so we saw only a 11% discount to start. Since then our six month renewal discounts have been 27% or 28%.

DW and I are usually each dinged for 10-12 instances of harsh braking during each 6 month evaluation period. We also each get a few hands free calling dings but rarely a ding for phone handling. It appears to me they are far more forgiving of harsh braking than phone handling. Even with a less than perfect score we still end up with hefty discounts.

So far I've seen nothing to cause me concern about sharing data with third party partners. Guess an old couple in their 70's isn't a target demographic for many marketing programs.

One big plus from participating in the program is that it has definitely made me a safer driver. I am far more conscious of things like maintaining following distance and resisting the urge to handle my phone thus preventing possibly becoming distracted.

And I really enjoy the $ savings.

 

[MichaelB]

I'm into my second year on the program. Nice discount, saving me roughly $750/yr.

Not chump change. Will your heirs be pleased or are you finding ways to enjoy it?

 

[REWahoo]

Not chump change. Will your heirs be pleased or are you finding ways to enjoy it?

A couple of them were over for a visit last night and learned we'd spent some of their inheritance recently on two new phones, new hearing aids, a new printer, etc. Don't think they knew what to make of our latest BTD episode!

 

[cbo111]

Thanks for the replies. I will give it a try.

 

[MichaelB]

A couple of them were over for a visit last night and learned we'd spent some of their inheritance recently on two new phones, new hearing aids, a new printer, etc. Don't think they knew what to make of our latest BTD episode!

Well done!

 

[MuirWannabe]

My experience:

The discount is applied to your premiums as your policy is renewed each 6 months. We started on the program about three months into my renewal period and they had limited info on our driving habits at renewal time so we saw only a 11% discount to start. Since then our six month renewal discounts have been 27% or 28%.

DW and I are usually each dinged for 10-12 instances of harsh braking during each 6 month evaluation period. We also each get a few hands free calling dings but rarely a ding for phone handling. It appears to me they are far more forgiving of harsh braking than phone handling. Even with a less than perfect score we still end up with hefty discounts.

So far I've seen nothing to cause me concern about sharing data with third party partners. Guess an old couple in their 70's isn't a target demographic for many marketing programs.

One big plus from participating in the program is that it has definitely made me a safer driver. I am far more conscious of things like maintaining following distance and resisting the urge to handle my phone thus preventing possibly becoming distracted.

And I really enjoy the $ savings.

I find it penalizes harsh brakes by far the most. Any of the phone dings don’t seem to detract much at all from our scores. But a harsh brake is a harsh change in our score.
Other than that, I agree with all your points.

 

[Dash man]

I find it penalizes harsh brakes by far the most. Any of the phone dings don’t seem to detract much at all from our scores. But a harsh brake is a harsh change in our score.
Other than that, I agree with all your points.

I agree. Harsh braking is hard to avoid at times, and the score gets dropped into the low 80s easily., But right now with a score of 83 we’re showing a 28% discount. The lowest I’ve seen is 26%.

 

[rwdflynavy]

We've used it for a couple years. I've never been a big fan of phone calls while driving, so that hasn't been too tough. Overall, pleased with the transaction, my driving data for more money staying in my pocket.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

The objections because you get dinged for this or that are moot -a few infractions don't move the needle much anyway. You are still better off with the 10% discount than you would be. It reduces your gain and is not used to set your premiums. I got hit (I think mileage based just before my renewal) so I only got 25% my first time and got 30% last renewal. Living in FL I pay through the nose (about $1,800/before safepilot with max deductible, multi-product, safe driver, and a friggin station wagon) so 25% ain't chump change. Currently sitting on 30% but the 6 month window ends shortly after my next road trip...


I'm a pretty safe and conservative driver. When working I would be tempted to catch up on texts (at lights generally but would be tempted to finish as I started rolling) since I had no phone access at work due to secure environment. I quit that by playing the mental game of "would I be able to live with myself if a kid (or anyone else) ran out in front of me in that moment and I killed them?" Even if the "accident" was unavoidable, I would not know that and would have to live with the thought my dumb choice cost a life. After playing that mental game a few times, the temptation to look at my phone when driving went away. Phone handling in any capacity is less tempting with the app but that's a darn good thing IMO. My phone is either in the console charging or in my pocket when driving. I have carplay so I can access my music/nav apps without touching the phone which makes that a little easier.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

As to privacy, I trust USAA's partners equal or better than my cellular provider, phone manufacturer, ISP, browser, auto manufacturer, and the various apps on my phone, etc that are tracking me anyway. I'm not willing to become a Luddite to avoid tracking and with facial recognition and required electronic payments/no cash acceptance at certain places, I'd still be tracked (eventually AI will know what I'm going to do before I do!). I may as well get something back from the new world of constant surveillance when interests align.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

We've used it for a couple years. I've never been a big fan of phone calls while driving, so that hasn't been too tough. Overall, pleased with the transaction, my driving data for more money staying in my pocket.

I used to call my folks hands-free when driving LD, that's the one change in my behavior that is noticeable but it's not bad and allows for podcasts or being present. Since getting Safepilot, all my emergency calls I must answer happen when driving though! -Two false alarms but wanted to answer so police were not dispatched. (BTW, Ring alarm motion detectors are pieces of poop prone to lots of false alarms. Since I turned them off, no false alarms)

 

[freedomatlast]

I agree. Harsh braking is hard to avoid at times, and the score gets dropped into the low 80s easily., But right now with a score of 83 we’re showing a 28% discount. The lowest I’ve seen is 26%.

Sounds kind of ridiculous. No one I know "harsh brakes" for fun. They "harsh brake" to avoid a collision. And you're penalized the most for "harsh braking"? Doesn't make any sense to me.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

Sounds kind of ridiculous. No one I know "harsh brakes" for fun. They "harsh brake" to avoid a collision. And you're penalized the most for "harsh braking"? Doesn't make any sense to me.

It's a pattern they are looking for, not a dog running in front of you. Tailgaters are constantly slamming on their brakes as they don't leave a safe following distance. I have friends and acquaintances that only brake hard and are terrifying to ride with. I'm pretty sure they learned to drive with Mario Cart and think there are only two positions for the throttle and brake.



I've gotten 3-4 "harsh braking" in about two years on the Safepilot and one was driving my parents' car that the collision avoidance slammed on the brakes when a car in the lane to my right slowed to make a right turn (it was on a slight curve to the left). I've braked a few times that I thought were hard that didn't trigger a harsh braking "violation." I look 2-3 cars ahead of me and don't like buying tires, brake pads, or gas so I'm pretty adept at avoiding surprise stops - especially daily driving on roads I am familiar with.

 

[freedomatlast]

I'm really surprised this seems to be so popular with so many here.

A big part of freedom to me is not being constantly monitored during daily activities.

Certainly not something I'd subscribe to save a few or even several hundred dollars over a year.

I'd think a better measure for the insurance companies for whether they will have to pay out a claim or not is a person's accident history over several decades.

Some of the most conservative drivers that don't "harsh brake" are some of the biggest contributors to accidents. Think of the car going 45 MPH on the interstate and the chaos that it causes. Or the ones that can't make up their minds at 4 way stop signs and stop and start several times before proceeding. Or the ones that get panicked on freeway entrance ramps. They won't speed up to safely merge into traffic, so they just stop at the end of the ramp. All these actions probably look fantastic on the monitor but are in actuality, are a menace on the roads.

 

[MuirWannabe]

I agree. Harsh braking is hard to avoid at times, and the score gets dropped into the low 80s easily., But right now with a score of 83 we’re showing a 28% discount. The lowest I’ve seen is 26%.

And those discounts are on top of the 10% discount you already get by just signing up for the program. If I understand correctly.

 

[REWahoo]

And those discounts are on top of the 10% discount you already get by just signing up for the program. If I understand correctly.

No, the discounts don't stack. The discount on the program ranges from a minimum of 10% just for participating to a maximum of 30% for "perfect" driving scores.

 

[HawkeyeNFO]

I think it tracks your speed, although they don't tell you that.

 

[MuirWannabe]

No, the discounts don't stack. The discount on the program ranges from a minimum of 10% just for participating to a maximum of 30% for "perfect" driving scores.

Oh, gotcha. Well darn. Still, I’ll take it.

 

[MuirWannabe]

I think it tracks your speed, although they don't tell you that.

I don’t think it tracks speed. At least it doesn’t ding you for speeding. That’d be a deal breaker for me.