Mobile-based insurance launched by MetLife
Insurer MetLife Auto and Home has created a mobile-based insurance offering named My Journey for use in four states. Users of the app in Michigan, Utah, Wisconsin and New Jersey will be able to track their driving habits and conditions to gain a score that will offer discounts for good driving as high as 30% after six months. The app also monitors phone-based distracted driving, which MetLife says will keep drivers safer on the road. The technology is available through on-board devices across eight other states.
MetLife Auto and Home has launched a mobile application for its usage-based insurance program, My Journey.

The mobile program is available in four states, Michigan, New Jersey, Utah, and Wisconsin. The app, which was developed in partnership with insurtech company TrueMotion, tracks total miles driven, time of day, road type and conditions, hard braking and harsh acceleration, and phone-based distracted driving, in order to arrive at a score for each trip. Enrollment is worth a 10% discount; after six months, the discount can be as high as 30% if drivers' scores are satisfactory.

“Today’s drivers face more distractions on the road than ever, which increases the risk of driving and puts upward pressure on car insurance rates,” noted Mick Noland, SVP of product management, MetLife Auto & Home. “That’s why we’ve leveraged the very latest smartphone technology to not only track drivers’ mileage to help them get the best possible rates, but also assist in keeping them and others safer on the roads. ”

My Journey is also available through on-board devices in eight additional states, MetLife says, putting the total number of states where the product is available at 12.

The news came as usage-based insurance research Ptolemus Consulting Group released key stats on the UBI market. There are currently more than 7 million UBI policyholders in North America, the company reported, and the smartphone is the fastest-growing data-collection device in the region as well. North American insurers that have launched mobile-based UBI programs this year include Farmers, Liberty Mutual and Desjardins.

