How Sprint is Leveraging M2M for the Insurance Industry

This article originally appeared in the Sept. 2012 issue of Next Gen Mobility.

While there are several providers touting insurance solutions, Sprint (News - Alert) is taking the concept of usage-based insurance to the next level with its offerings. Sprint offers Integrated Insurance Solutions, a complete UBI product that is easy for insurance providers to deploy. By working with best-in-class partners to provide devices, software applications and support, Integrated Insurance Solutions can enable companies to offer a seamless experience to provide benefits to both companies and policy holders. Among the facets of the Sprint offering are driver analytics and scoring, predictive risk analysis, vehicle location, fuel usage amounts, distracted driver alerts and more.

George Kandt, M2M marketing manager at Sprint, said the UBI product will help insurance companies with assessment and profitability, reduce claims, attract and retain higher quality customers, help with fraud prevention, and more. He also highlighted some of the benefits to policy holders, noting that they will save money, reduce fuel costs, improve driver safety, and even gain the ability to locate family members when necessary.

The solution starts with a physical, plug-and-play device, the data from which is delivered over Sprint’s network to a scoring or application portal. One portal allows the insurance company to get a clear picture of driving habits, but another allows the policyholders to see their own information to help them make better-informed decisions. The Sprint solution also includes operations and logistics elements and support services.

One of the most exciting aspects of the Sprint offering is its trial program. To prove that the UBI solution is easy to use, efficient and effective, Sprint is making an unprecedented trial period available, through which interested insurance providers can use the plug-and-play devices for their own agents’ vehicles. These agents will have access to the agent and policy holder portals, so they can see firsthand how the information will give companies a better picture of their drivers and allow them to better assess drivers, reduce claims and eliminate fraud.

At the same time, the agents will see the solution from a driver’s point of view, noting how they can get information on fuel usage, track teenage drivers and avail themselves of the other highlights of the user portal. The three-month trial is an easy way to see the ROI that UBI will provide without a huge investment or hidden fees.