Ridesharing Drivers Are Safer Than Average American Drivers

Average consumers are safer catching an Uber or entrusting their kids to a Lyft than they are getting behind the wheel themselves, and insurers should appreciate that ridesharing drivers take safe driving seriously

Boston, MA (May 26, 2016) – Publicly available data on how ridesharing drivers truly fare versus average American drivers is limited. Even the U.S. insurance industry, which has responded well to ridesharing over the past 18 months, lacks insights into ridesharing drivers’ risk profile. Using data provided by Zendrive, a driving analytics vendor, Aite Group reveals that ridesharing drivers, based on multiple attributes, drive more safely than average drivers.

In terms of speeding, Aite Group finds that 30% of trips taken by ridesharing drivers involve speeding, compared to 41% for average drivers. Even when it comes to cell phone usage, which ridesharing drivers depend on for their work, they tend to be safer phone users while driving than average drivers. Ridesharing drivers are recorded fumbling with their phone for 23 seconds during a typical 15-minute trip, compared to 35 seconds for average drivers.

“Insurers with a negative bias toward ridesharing may actually reconsider and favor policyholders that engage in ridesharing to the extent that participating in such activity may contribute to making them better drivers,” explains Aite Group partner and insurance research director Gwenn Bezard. “For instance, insurers could incent young drivers to engage in ridesharing as a way to accelerate their growing up into savvy drivers.”

Average Scores for each category. Telematics data based on multiple attributes reveals that ridesharing drivers drive more safely than average drivers. (Aite Group)

To support this report, Aite Group interviewed seven major U.S. insurers to learn more about the data points they’d ideally need in order to better understand the risk of ridesharing drivers. Aite Group then partnered with Zendrive, a technology vendor on a mission to improve driving for everyone through better data and analytics using just the sensors in a smartphone, to extract insights from its database of ridesharing and average drivers.

Aite Group’s latest report, Driving Analytics: Ridesharing Drivers Are Safer Than Average American Drivers, uses data collected by driving analytics provider Zendrive to analyze ridesharing drivers’ behaviors and provides recommendations for how insurers should address this opportunity. This 13-page Impact Note contains nine figures. Clients of Aite Group’s P&C Insurance service can download this report.

About the Report

To support this report, Aite Group interviewed seven major U.S. insurers to learn more about the data points they’d ideally need in order to better understand the risk of ridesharing drivers. Aite Group then partnered with Zendrive, a technology vendor on a mission to improve driving for everyone through better data and analytics using just the sensors in a smartphone, to extract insights from its database of ridesharing and average drivers.

About Aite Group

Aite Group is an independent research and advisory firm focused on business, technology, and regulatory issues and their impact on the financial services industry. With expertise in banking, payments, securities & investments, and insurance, Aite Group’s analysts deliver comprehensive, actionable advice to key market participants in financial services. Headquartered in Boston with a presence in Chicago, New York, San Francisco, London, and Milan, Aite Group works with its clients as a partner, advisor, and catalyst, challenging their basic assumptions and ensuring they remain at the forefront of industry trends.

Source: Aite Group