Confused device shows you're a safe driver.

[ajp70]

From the Confused.com ad. How's that work then?

[SystemParanoia]

3g gps dongle tracks you everywhere you go and what times you go there

if you only ever travel off peak and during daylight hours, and you never pull more than 0.000001g on acceleration, braking and cornering

then you might save £3 or so ... but the fact you have to pay £50 per month to rent the dongle wipes out any saving you may make.

[Colonial]

I love saying the word dongle.

[garethj]

I haven't seen the ad, but I think "safe driver" should say "safe* driver"

Then they can put...

• doesn't measure you cutting people up at roundabouts because you're afraid to brake, doesn't measure you tailgating, doesn't measure you weaving across your lane, doesn't measure you driving through red traffic lights, doesn't measure you giving cyclists a friendly nudge etc

[4key]

Id like to see the actual unit that they install to see how tamper proof it is, im aldo guessing that it records the data aswell otherwise you could just use a gps blocker whenever you wanted to go for a tear about.


Do they record video aswell like a dash cam?

Edited by 4key on Friday 10th August 06:08

[Motorrad]

Colonial said:

I love saying the word dongle.

Me too, it also reminds me of 'dongrel' which is what you'd have to be to have one of these unless you were a very very high risk driver with a lot to save.

[Alfanatic]

It works by allowing insurance companies to dramatically increase the rates of anybody who doesn't have a dongle.

[garethj]

4key said:

Do they record video aswell like a dash cam?

That would be a good idea, although you'd want it pointing at the driver rather than at the road. Then you'd see him on the phone, dozing off, reaching in the glovebox for a chocolate bar, staring at that girl on the pavement with the massive... ohmygodmindthatcar

[Colonial]

Alfanatic said:

It works by allowing insurance companies to dramatically increase the rates of anybody who doesn't have a dongle.

I thought women generally already had cheaper insurance?

[Funk]

Alfanatic said:

It works by allowing insurance companies to dramatically increase the rates of anybody who doesn't have a dongle.

I can well believe that this will become the case in most cases.

[mr2aw11]

So, by taking the correct route and staying in lane for, say, a 12 o'clock exit on a roundabout, and in the process generating some "dangerous" cornering forces (cos let's face it, the thresholds on the box will be stupidly low), one would be tagged as a higher risk than the cock who straight-lines the same roundabout, cutting up the poor schmuck wanting to turn right... Cos no acceleration or cornering makes us oh so safe...
Utter bks... As has been said, not "volunteering" for a box will soon be an excuse to load premiums.

[mrmr96]

mr2aw11 said:

So, by taking the correct route and staying in lane for, say, a 12 o'clock exit on a roundabout, and in the process generating some "dangerous" cornering forces (cos let's face it, the thresholds on the box will be stupidly low), one would be tagged as a higher risk than the cock who straight-lines the same roundabout, cutting up the poor schmuck wanting to turn right... Cos no acceleration or cornering makes us oh so safe...
Utter bks... As has been said, not "volunteering" for a box will soon be an excuse to load premiums.

"I'm indignant about the assumptions I made."

[Captain Muppet]

Colonial said:

Alfanatic said:

It works by allowing insurance companies to dramatically increase the rates of anybody who doesn't have a dongle.

I thought women generally already had cheaper insurance?

Although isn't that illegal? Discrimination is always* bad.

• Unless it's having entirely separate events for women in the Olypics, which is somehow a triumph of equality despite being very obvious segregation. Chicks eh? Equaland special.

[McHaggis]

Captain Muppet said:

• Unless it's having entirely separate events for women in the Olypics, which is somehow a triumph of equality despite being very obvious segregation. Chicks eh? Equaland special.

Aside from horses.

[Captain Muppet]

McHaggis said:

Captain Muppet said:

• Unless it's having entirely separate events for women in the Olypics, which is somehow a triumph of equality despite being very obvious segregation. Chicks eh? Equal and special.

Aside from horses.

Odd isn't it? That one set of events isn't sexist.

I'm baffled by it.

[essexplumber]

Does the box show that you're sat in the middle lane doing 45, does it show that you're sat so close to the steering wheel you can brush you're teeth with it, does it show that you don't indicate,ever?

Does it show that you brake for no apparent reason, does it show that you're seat is laying down and you cannot see over the wheel, does it show that you're tyre pressure are so low they should be measured in millibars, does it show that you have the contents of a funfairs prize shelf dangling from your rearview mirror?

No but it will show that you drive very, very, very slowly. So obviously you're an incredibly good driver.

[ajp70]

essexplumber said:

Does the box show that you're sat in the middle lane doing 45, does it show that you're sat so close to the steering wheel you can brush you're teeth with it, does it show that you don't indicate,ever?

Does it show that you brake for no apparent reason, does it show that you're seat is laying down and you cannot see over the wheel, does it show that you're tyre pressure are so low they should be measured in millibars, does it show that you have the contents of a funfairs prize shelf dangling from your rearview mirror?

No but it will show that you drive very, very, very slowly. So obviously you're an incredibly good driver.

This is what I'm thinking. If you put said box/dongle into the car of someone who is top of the class for advanced driving and a person (who we all have travelled with at some time) who doesn't exceed 50mph ever, but who scares the bejesus out of you; who and how would the data say is the better candidate for lower insurance?

Is Rainman's brother really an excellent driver?

[wormburner]

Seems fair enough to me.

Everyone accepts that different cars of similar value cost different amounts to insure, whilst not saying anything about the competence of the driver.

I expect there is a demonstrable correlation between max 'g' and propensity to crash. There's also definitely a correlation between driving late at night and a greater propensity to crashing.

Just as there's a correlation between driving an Evo and a greater propensity to crash, compared to driving a Rover 75.

[long time lurker]

Insurers can't win..... people moan about how they pay lots for other peoples bad driving by using statistics for all drivers in your age group etc.

so something comes along that bases premiums on how you drive and people moan again!!

You could always pay the £5million bond(I think it's this figure?) and self insure.... although 1 claim above this amount would make your insurance very expensive!

[ajp70]

I'm not having a go at insurance co.s for trying to asess the good from the bad and the down right ugly. I just couldn't understand how a magical box installed in a car could tell if the car is being driven safely, be it fast or slow.