My auto insurance company is USAA. And USAA has a program (and smartphone app) called ‘SafePilot’ which collects driving data every time I drive. Some think this level of ‘surveillance’ is way too invasive. However, I have come to realize that being part of the SafePilot program does in fact make me a safer driver. First, SafePilot gives me an infraction for Harsh Braking. That makes sense, and I’ll explain in a moment now my Tesla helps me out in this regard.
Second, SafePilot really doesn’t like us to use our smartphones while driving. Phone Handing, Hand-Held Calling, and Hands-Free Calling all result in infractions. And when you get too many infractions, the auto insurance discount you would get with a perfect score is reduced.
So, SafePilot encourages good driving habits and potentially gives me a 15% discount on my auto insurance, but what role does my Tesla play in all this. Well, Teslas are designed to do almost all of their braking via regeneration. This means that when you release the ‘go’ (aka gas) pedal, a significant amount of braking occurs as power is put back into the battery via regeneration. In fact, the actual brake pedal is rarely used, if ever.
What’s cool about using SafePilot with a Tesla is that the regenerative braking process is so smooth and consistent that it never results in a Hard Braking infraction. The only time I would get an infraction is in case of an emergency when I actually need to use the brake pedal, which with good driving habits rarely happens. As shown below, I did get one infraction for hard braking a while ago due to an unavoidable incident. I still get the infraction even though I might not have been the cause for the emergency. However, if that only happens once every 1000 miles or so, I’m OK with that and still get the full discount when my insurance renews.
I also find that SafePilot can distinguish between me as the primary driver, and a passenger who happens to be using my phone for navigation and such. How it knows I have no idea, but is does. It also knows when I’m riding a bicycle versus driving a car. SafePilot is a well designed app and really helps reinforce good driving habits. And when used by a Tesla owner, should be easy to get the full insurance discount. I’m happy with SafePilot’s design and its ability to accurately monitor my driving. Is it keeping track of everywhere I go in my car? Absolutely! Is that a problem? Absolutely not! I’m a more cautious, more attentive driver as a result, and I’m saving some money on insurance as well. And these are all good things!