What Is Pay As You Drive?
Where Do You Live?
The latest innovation in auto insurance is Pay As You Drive. As its name implies, Pay As You Drive sets your premiums on the basis of how many miles you drive. Drive less, pay less. Drive more, pay more. Pay As You Drive policies can be tailored to meet each driver’s specific needs.
Pay As You Drive insurance premiums can be in determined in several ways: within a specific range of miles, by number of miles actually driven in a given time period, or by the number of hours driven in a given time period. Premiums for Pay As You Drive insurance can also be based on just the mileage without a fixed time period.
Since driving distance or driving time sets your insurance rates, your driving has to be monitored. You can get periodic certified odometer readings, or your automobile may be fitted with GPS monitors that upload the vehicle’s computer data.
Mileage monitoring raises some concerns for those considering Pay As You Drive insurance. There are concerns that the devices used to monitor mileage will be used to track when or where a person drives, violating the driver’s privacy. However, that is not something a driver interested in Pay As You Drive insurance should worry about because the monitoring devices focus just on the number of miles driven and nothing else. Privacy concerns are not an issue with Pay As You Drive insurance.
There are several benefits to switching to Pay As You Drive insurance. First of all, your insurance premiums are based on your driving and not other factors like gender, age and where you live. Pay As You Drive insurance also offers an incentive to cut back on the amount of driving you do. Less driving means you will save money not only on your car insurance, but also on gas and auto maintenance and repair, not to mention saving wear and tear on your vehicle. Pay As You Drive insurance is also good for the environment, because less driving means a reduction in auto emissions. There is also less congestion and traffic on the highways and roads.
In addition, low mileage drivers will no longer subsidize high mileage drivers under the Pay As You Drive insurance system. Under a traditional insurance system, drivers pay the same amount for insurance premiums if they drive a few hundred miles a year or if they drive several thousand. Pay As You Drive is a more fair and equitable way of determining insurance premiums. You really do pay for what you use under this system.
The Brookings Institute found that two-thirds of American household would save under Pay As You Drive, an average of $22.50 a month, or $270 a year. The high-mileage drivers, of course, would not.
If you are interested in learning more about Pay As You Drive insurance, or to see if it is available in your area, contact a qualified insurance provider. He or she can help you tailor a Pay As You Drive insurance program to fit your specific needs.
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