Connected car dongle maker Automatic started out as a consumer-focused company that sought to help give customers more insight into their driving habits, with the aim of helping to gamify things like fuel efficiency, and generally offer up tips for improved driving. It was only natural that it would take its data-collecting dongle and driver improvement business and partner up with insurance providers, who would like nothing more than a more comprehensive look at the drivers they insure.
Automatic’s list of insurance provider partners is fairly long, as a result, and includes industry leaders like Liberty Mutual and more. Now, American Family Insurance is also joining the mix, offering up free access to dongles included with their plans for drivers who enrolled in KnowYourDrive, a program that rewards insurance plan members with an immediate 5 percent discount on their insurance, which can scale up to 40 percent depending on their driving habits over time.
Automatic’s dongle plugs into a vehicles OBD II port, and can access data including speed, braking rate, maintenance requirements and more. American Family Insurance also plans to roll out new features with Automatic, including roadside assistance, and direct claims submission through Automatic’s app – which is made easier since data around what happened in an accident is ready to hand via the OBD II-provided information.
Mutually beneficial distribution deals like this one between Automatic and insurance providers are a smart way for the company to ensure its devices get reach beyond the average early adopter or gadget geek.