Root Insurance Becomes The First Insurance Company to Offer Discounts To Drivers of Self-Driving Cars

(PRWEB) March 09, 2017

Root Insurance, the first insurance company founded on the principle of fundamental fairness, today announced a new program for Tesla owners that gives a discount for the increased safety of semi-autonomous vehicles--or self-driving cars.

Root is the first car insurance company to offer such a discount. Starting today, the new discount is available to Tesla drivers with Autopilot, but soon will be available to everyone with a self-driving car. To qualify, drivers must first download the Root app and take a test drive.

Self-driving technology has proven to significantly reduce crash risk. For example, the crash rate of Tesla vehicles plummeted almost 40% after Autopilot became available, according to a recent report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Falling crash rates means the insurance industry should adjust their models to account for safer driving habits. But none of them have--until now.

"Self-driving cars are making our roads safer, and that means less risk and less expense for everyone," said Alex Timm, CEO of Root. "It's only fair to pass those savings along to the customers who invest in those self-driving cars."

Using artificial intelligence, Root is able to adjust risk by factoring in the increased safety of self-driving miles. To calculate the new discount, Root's app measures Autosteer-eligible highway miles driven during a test drive. Then a tiered discount is applied--the higher the percent of highway miles driven, the higher the discount.

"The car insurance industry is woefully out of date, which is why you pretty much only see flashy marketing campaigns and pricing gimmicks," said Dan Manges, CTO of Root. "At Root, we're using technology to reinvent insurance from the ground up to make the whole experience easier and fairer for our customers. Our new discount for self-driving cars is just one of many cutting-edge things still to come."

To join Root, drivers simply download the app and take a test drive, which takes approximately two or three weeks. Once the test drive is complete, Root provides a quote that rewards good driving behavior and allows customers to switch their insurance policy--all through their mobile phone.

Root is currently available in Ohio and will be coming to more states soon. For more updates, please follow Root's blog.

Get the rate you deserve at http://www.joinroot.com.

Disclaimers:

Tesla® and the Tesla logo are the property of Tesla Motors, Inc. or its affiliates. Tesla Motors, Inc. does not sponsor, endorse or approve this promotion. This is a special promotion for certain Root customers and ROOT is not affiliated with Tesla Motors, Inc. in any capacity.

About Root

Root is the first insurance company founded on the principle of fundamental fairness. We create personalized products that give good drivers the protection they deserve.

At Root we only insure good drivers, so our rates are always fair. Unlike other insurance companies, we do not bundle good drivers with bad drivers. Instead, we use data science to find and reward good drivers with the best rates.

Root is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is an official carrier licensed by Ohio Department of Insurance, a member of the Ohio Guarantee Fund, and backed by the largest reinsurance companies in the world.

Get the rate you deserve at http://www.joinroot.com.

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