A motorcycle insurance scheme where policy holders install a tracking system in their bike in return for cheap premiums as low as $A11 a month has started in Europe.
Vigo Insure is another product from the Slovenian start-up who developed the aftermarket Start Turn System (automatic self-cancelling indicators) and the Smart Brake Module to prevent tailender crashes.
Now they have invented a telematic product called a Vigobox that sits under your seat and tracks your motorcycle.
It informs the owner via a phone app if your motorcycle has been moved and even sends an emergency call for help if it senses you have crashed.
Vigobox is installed under your bike seat when you buy their Vigo Insurance policy and comes with an online portal to track your riding.
Cheaper policy
Some may say this is the thin edge of the wedge of privacy invasion with insurance companies able to cancel your insurance if you speed or ride at night.
However, the founders ensure, that all the data of recorded rides is exclusively and only available to the motorcycle rider. The Insurance company can only access to the end-users data, if the rider was involved in a traffic accident, and even that data is very limited (name, telephone and policy number, accident location). If the insuree doesn’t give explicit consent, the insurance company or any other third party cannot access the ride recordings.
That’s not to say other insurers will be as considerate if this type of surveillance becomes mandatory on policies in future!
Others may find it a safety device that can track a stolen vehicle and also reduce your insurance premium.
The monthly costs of the insurance (with monitoring) are from €7 (about $A11) a month.
As usual, the price depends on the motorcycle brand and type.
Market chief Petra Zagmajster says Vigo Insurance has only been available in Slovenia and Croatia a few months but is valid in all parts of Europe. It has already reached 4.6% of the market share.
“Soon we’ll enter to other EU markets,” Petra says.
C-founder Rok Upelj says the motorcycle they use to test their products was stolen from a locked garage.
“In that moment we activated the police and hoped for the best, but we had no luck,” Rok says.
“Back then the vehicle wasn’t insured, because the insurance premiums were too high. We interviewed many motorcyclists, what the most important thing in owning a motorcycle was. The end result was, that safety and theft prevention come first – and that’s when the idea for VIGO was born.”
- Would you install a tracker if you got cheaper motorcycle insurance? Leave your comments below.