DirectLine DrivePlus
Discussion
Anyone here use DrivePlus with directline (their version of the black box recordings)?
I know it will generally be limited to people under 25 because there isnt much benefit to anyone older, but still, how are you finding it??
One thing that annoys me no end is a journey like this morning... No matter what you do if you drive at the wrong time of day you get knocked down massively!
Discuss
I know it will generally be limited to people under 25 because there isnt much benefit to anyone older, but still, how are you finding it??
One thing that annoys me no end is a journey like this morning... No matter what you do if you drive at the wrong time of day you get knocked down massively!
Discuss
I'm starting to look at car insurance for my kids (twins) as they will be 17 soon, the price difference for any sort of reasonable car from my initial look is about £1k less per year for a 17 year old if you fit the black box. When you've got to pay for two of them its going to be hard to avoid the temptation.
What happens if you get consistent bad ratings for rubbish like time of day?
What happens if you get consistent bad ratings for rubbish like time of day?
Basically seems like anything involving making good progress on good/fun roads would kill your score.
Not to mention, I'd hate to have the thought of the black box in the back of my mind every time I had to brake/overtake.
I'm pretty sure driving in a manner to keep the box happy is actually more dangerous than just driving to the conditions around you.
If these companies had their way we'd all be forced to wide dual carriageways with 1.6 Diesel Qashqais limited to 40mph. Rural roads and late night driving is for hooligans only!
Not to mention, I'd hate to have the thought of the black box in the back of my mind every time I had to brake/overtake.
I'm pretty sure driving in a manner to keep the box happy is actually more dangerous than just driving to the conditions around you.
If these companies had their way we'd all be forced to wide dual carriageways with 1.6 Diesel Qashqais limited to 40mph. Rural roads and late night driving is for hooligans only!
Edited by Toonshorty on Monday 14th March 14:29
princeperch said:
I would never, in a million years, have one of those awful boxes fitted to my car.
Would be mildly amusing to fit one to a track day weapon and see how low you could score on a few laps of Silverstone. 
A couple of mates and I had fun with that Aviva Drive app when it first came out, seeing how low we could score. All using false names and disposable email addresses, of course.
Toonshorty said:
Basically seems like anything involving making good progress on good roads would kill your score.
Not to mention, I'd hate to have the thought of the black box in the back of my mind every time I had to brake/overtake.
I'm pretty sure driving in a manner to keep the box happy is actually more dangerous than just driving to the conditions around you.
Used to have a similar recording device when I worked for a massive car glass replacement firm and it was a huge bane. Couldn't make quick progress, would be penalised for being in traffic with your engine on and don't even get me started on coming off a small slip road onto a busy dual carriageway! Not to mention, I'd hate to have the thought of the black box in the back of my mind every time I had to brake/overtake.
I'm pretty sure driving in a manner to keep the box happy is actually more dangerous than just driving to the conditions around you.
tankplanker said:
I'm starting to look at car insurance for my kids (twins) as they will be 17 soon, the price difference for any sort of reasonable car from my initial look is about £1k less per year for a 17 year old if you fit the black box. When you've got to pay for two of them its going to be hard to avoid the temptation.
What happens if you get consistent bad ratings for rubbish like time of day?
Not much really. They wont up your premium just because you score low, but they will reduce it if you score high. What happens if you get consistent bad ratings for rubbish like time of day?
Its absolutely bizarre for me, if I set off at 7:30 my journey takes 40 minutes and I get 5/5 for time of day.
But if I set off at 7:45 it takes the same 40 minutes and I get 3/5, and at 8am it scores me 1/5??
It is supposed to average out, but if you use your car to commute, your penalized. I even emailed them asking if this was fair and they replied along the lines of, driving to work is dangerous, so your penalized for it.
Even so, im 19 and had an accident last year, so this was really my only option to get the insurance back down to something that didn't make my eyes water.
iphonedyou said:
So long as these aren't compulsory I shall never have one.
My brother had one (for his first year of driving) and it penalised him for doing 50mph on a road which has a 50mph limit. It reckoned the road wasn't suitable for that speed... It's a wide, flat B road with great visibility both ways and very few junctions that enter onto it.
It's not just about your driving style but your driving habits.
If driving at a certain time is statistically higher-risk, it makes complete sense that the insurance company would weight your premium based on it.
If the other factors are keeping your costs down, then it's making sense for you to have the box. If they're not, then get rid of it and lesson learnt that statistically you're a higher risk.
If driving at a certain time is statistically higher-risk, it makes complete sense that the insurance company would weight your premium based on it.
If the other factors are keeping your costs down, then it's making sense for you to have the box. If they're not, then get rid of it and lesson learnt that statistically you're a higher risk.
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