Allstate introduces a usage-based insurance app for smartphoneusers. Available for free download through iTunes or Google Play,the new Drivewise app provides near real-time updates with eachtrip and provides easier access to customers on the go.

Drivewise is Allstate's user-based insurance (UBI) program,which is designed to improve driving behavior and reward customersfor safe driving. Drivewise measures things such as mileage,braking, speed, and time of day when a customer is driving.

Using that data, Allstate calculates a discount for eachcustomer using its telematics technology. Before using the newDrivewise app, customers must register the application by enteringtheir user ID and password, which must initially be setuponline.

“This provides our customers a method to quickly identify waysto improve their driving and, at the same time, be rewarded forsafe driving habits,” says Allstate's senior product vice presidentEd Biemer.

Biemer explains the mobile app serves a “report-card function”for drivers carrying smartphones.

“When you finish your trip, you can log-on to the app instead ofsitting down at your computer and getting on the website,” he says.“This is for people who are on the go.”

Originally launched in Illinois in December 2010, Drivewise isnow available in 16 states as Allstate continues an aggressiverollout this year. The carrier expects the majority of itsmarketplace to have the usage-based insurance tool by the end of2013.

Biemer reports that the app was tested by some Allstateemployees first before it was released.

“We felt it was time to provide more access to our customerswith their driving information,” he says. “The app is user friendlyand we believe it forges new ground for us.”

Allstate announces that Missouri, Indiana, Minnesota, Maryland,Utah, and Washington join 10 other states delivering constantfeedback to drivers through a website designed to help identify andimprove driving habits.

To date, more than 400 million miles have been driven bycustomers using the device and of those receiving a drivingdiscount, Allstate claims the average savings is at 14 percent. Thecarrier adds that more than a third of all new customers enrollwhere it is available.

Upon signing up for and using the device, customersautomatically receive a 10 percent enrollment discount and afterthe first six months of use, the enrollment discount is replacedwith a performance discount based on the driving habitsdemonstrated.

“We know Drivewise can create a safer, more self-aware driverand, it remains our goal to offer usage-based insurance to as manyof our customers as possible so we can encourage safer driving andpass along a significant discount for it,” says Biemer.

Employing advanced telematics technology, Drivewiseplugs intothe on-board diagnostic port found under the dashboard/steeringcolumn on most cars manufactured after 1996 to track drivingbehavior. Participants can plug in the small, wireless telematicsdevice, and then go online or use the new smartphone app to learnabout their habits behind the wheel and identify what they can doto become safer drivers.

The web portal and app also display the potential performancediscount a customer may be eligible for based on their drivinghabits, so drivers can constantly connect the way they drive withhow much they can save. Rates will not go up based on drivingscores, but savings of up to 30 percent can be earned by driverswith the safest driving scores and lowest mileage.