Car insurance: Black boxes are 'unpopular'

Wednesday, 04 October 2006

Opposition is growing to one insurance company's suggestion that aeroplane-style black boxes should be affixed to cars.

One report by a price comparison website cites fewer than ten per cent of UK drivers would welcome a black box fitted to their car, even if it would reduce their car insurance premium by a third. This addition to vehicles would allow insurers to critique the motoring habits of drivers.

Richard Mason, director of the website, said: "It is evident some drivers are wary of these products and will need time to get used to these Big Brother tactics."

"While this is understandable it is highly likely that black-box technology and pay-as-you-drive policies will reduce insurance costs for safe drivers as premiums will not be artificially inflated to cover others' bad driving," he added.

The distances driven and the areas in which the vehicle is used will be two important measurements taken by car insurance companies in order to calculate how much of a risk each driver is.

Each black box will cost the driver £200 to install, although civil liberties campaigners are angry that they could be used to collate potentially incriminating data, such as breaking speed limits, against drivers.

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