'Black box' car insurance

[Piemaster]

As per title, anyone have any experience of it?
<proud Dad>Ms PM passed her driving test today </proud Dad> and is now eyeing up my wifes Renault Zoe, and dropping hints, but she won't be using it that much. University commute will still be bus, but picking up drunken Dad from pub is a possibility. Zoe at present on a multi-car policy which excludes anyone under 25, but Marmalade (or similar) as an extra layer for her use would seem an option.

 

[nickyboy]

Tesco Insure the Box on our second car, with Son II (18 years old) as main driver

Works fine, the policy has a fixed mileage annually and he can earn bonus miles by driving carefully. In reality, he never earns bonus miles but equally they never contact him to say he's driving too fast or whatever. He drives it to school and back every day

The premium cost difference between this set up (I presume other black box insurers are similar) and regular non black box insurance was astronomical, regardless of whether Son II was main driver or named driver. Also this way he can (hopefully) build up a bit of no claims discount for the future

 

[gbb]

Our DIL has black box after passing mid/late last year. No problems and she gets aroind 50 to 100 miles a month bonus..even though she says she's not driving like a saint.

 

[Drago]

Mini D 3 found black box wasn't the cheapest. IIRC Sheila's Wheels were cheaper, better cover, and no black box.

 

[Crackle]

Hastings Smartmiles was cheapest for me for two. Marmalade would have been cheaper for one and they build their own no claims.

 

[Mr Celine]

I'm main driver on the family runabout, a mark 2 Ford Ka, and after Celinette #2 passed her test it was going to cost over £600 to keep her on the policy. Direct line drive plus box brought that down to £350.
She is a student who lives away during term time but now has a boyfriend and a part-time job and has driven the car about three times since I renewed the insurance.

You can accrue points towards a reduction in next year's premium, and check current scores on an app. The algorithm this uses is loaded against you. I'm quite often on the A6091, a modern, well aligned, streetlight 60mph road. If I drive at 60 mph it marks me down for driving faster than other drivers. The only time it's not possible to drive at 60 mph is at rush hour, when it marks me down for driving at busy times.

The current record family score for an individual run is held by Mrs Celine who scored 99%. It was a very snowy day, 55mph max on the M9 followed by 40 mph on the A7. The black box obviously liked this but didn't care that she completely lost it in a snow drift near Stow, going off-road right up the banking before getting us back to the tarmac and under control.

 

[Piemaster]

The algorithm this uses is loaded against you

Insurance company - no real surprise there then.

I'm not keen on an app that monitors my/wifes driving, just the daughters. Though having a box plugged into the car I suppose it is possible to do whether logged into a phone app or not.

Just for a change, if she wants to drive it, she'll have to go do some of the legwork involved in getting quotes not me

 

[Crackle]

I think the Marmalade option just monitors her as she has to log in on the app.

 

[Brains]

Some Black Boxes have 'interesting' results.

My Nephews girlfriend rolled her car, but as it was only at 20MPH it did not cause any issue.
Another friend was clocked doing 80mph down a 2 meter Cornish Lane, which I know well. I think on a 1,000cc race bike you could probably touch 40 mph. No car could make the corners at much over 30 mph and you would be mad to go over 15-20 mph

 

[PaulSB]

My son is on Hastings Smartmiles which at the time was the cheapest. The weekly report shows he is currently on target for a £493 saving on next year’s premium - I think showing the savings he’s earned to date is a great incentive to drive well.

There does seem to be an issue with the box though as it doesn’t record any data regarding acceleration, not speed.

 

[bianchi1]

Im always amazed that my teenage colleagues (predominantly male) will happily spend £20-£30 a week extra on non-black box insurance so that they can race each other around town, or see how fast they can get their clapped out 205 to go.

 

[Piemaster]

Well, Marmalade is a bust - they won't insure the Zoe on the black box and the quote was £5800 for a year .

 

[nickyboy]

Well, Marmalade is a bust - they won't insure the Zoe on the black box and the quote was £5800 for a year .

We also found the premiums hugely variable, even amongst different black box providers. Son II is driving a Nissan Juke 1.2 and that's about £900 pa with Tesco Insure the Box

 

[Levo-Lon]

Sounds racist to me...

 

[Piemaster]

So, can't get the Zoe insured at anything approaching reasonable, the Nissan Elgrand apart from being a bit on the big side is an import - so insurers won't go there either. And nobody gets to sit in my (LHD) Alfa Spider except as a passenger so no. Just no.
My wife has made it quite clear changing the Zoe is not an option, so I've offered to buy DD new shoes to walk to the bus and started circling MacDonalds job adverts as the only route now seems to be her buying a car. Something I can't see happening as, well, parents will do the ferrying about for places she can't get to easily by bus. Given its only a couple of times a week marmalade would have been a good option. Never mind.