Working from home has become the norm for many of us, with a significant number of people expected to adopt hybrid working practices in the future.
In the U.K. alone, it has been reported that working from home has accounted for a 885-million-kilometre reduction in the distance drivers travelled per week.
Distance travelled is a key consideration for insurers. Ford now is working with U.K.-based pay-by-mile car insurance provider By Miles, with the aim of saving money for those no longer making a daily commute and those commuting less. Making use of connected vehicle data from their vehicles, Ford customers could benefit from a pay-per-drive approach with potential associated savings.
“The way we travel has undergone a huge shift that could well have a long-lasting impact. We want to champion the changing needs of drivers who continue to work from home," said Mark Harvey, director, Enterprise Connectivity, Ford of Europe. “Working with By Miles, we aim to use connected vehicle data to help deliver a full suite of innovative new products and services for our customers.”
Insurance products that take into account actual – rather than projected – distance travelled often rely on the installation of a plug-in device. For Ford and By Miles customers, information will instead come directly from the vehicle’s embedded modem, FordPass Connect. No additional device is required.
Customers sign up online and the policy is activated by simply accepting a prompt on the in-vehicle screen to share their distance data. Owners are empowered to manage their vehicle data sharing and can control who their vehicle data is shared with and for which purposes.
According to financial review website Finder, 51 per cent of consumers could save £257.97 on their car insurance by getting a policy with By Miles.
“The way insurance used to work may not work for everybody. Whatever the new normal looks like, it’s clear that drivers’ needs are changing quickly – and people want fairer, more flexible cover that reflects that,” said James Blackham, CEO and founder, By Miles. “We’re delighted that our pay-by-mile collaboration with Ford will offer drivers a seamless, connected alternative to traditional car insurance.”
The collaboration with By Miles, which fully launches later this year, is one of the first of several partnerships to be announced across Europe that will be enabled by Ford’s connected vehicle technology.