Sprint targets insurance sector with connected car offering

US operator Sprint has launched a connected car offering for automotive insurance companies. The IMS UBI Intelligence tool offers insurers a way to accurately determine a driver’s policy premium based on their driving behaviour.

Drivers can choose to plug a telematics device into the port of their vehicle, which will measure metrics such as distance travelled and their braking and acceleration patterns. As a result, they may benefit from a lower premium for proving that they are a good driver. Insurers could also use the service to levy a higher premium on drivers who are not. The operator teamed up with connected car solutions provider Intelligent Mechatronic Systems (IMS) to devise the solution.

“Our auto insurance carriers have been requesting a single source for all their usage-based insurance (UBI) needs,” said Mohamed Nasser, director for M2M product and marketing at Sprint.

“We have selected IMS because they provide the most complete, turnkey solution available on the market today, including hardware, logistics, support, secure data warehousing and analytics.”

The solution forms part of Sprint’s Integrated Insurance Solution portfolio and the operator added that it plans to launch further connected car services to customers, such as training for young drivers, infotainment services, vehicle diagnostics and fleet management solutions.

Earlier this week, rival AT&T also announced plans for the connected car market. The operator intends to launch a live linear TV and video on demand streaming services to car makers collaborating with it in the AT&T Drive Studio.