Looking into the black box

The telematics black box is finding its way into more and more cars. It measures journeys and use and helps to calculate insurance premiums for automobiles. But telematics also saves lives. In an interview on the Allianz Knowledge site, Jacques Amselem, CEO of Allianz Telematics, has made a first assessment of the success of the black box.


The principle behind the technology is that motor insurance customers only pay for how much they use their cars. However, as a tool for measuring a variety of parameters, telematics provides a great deal of information that is helping to improve driver safety and preserve the environment.

"On the one hand, customers perceive a strong value from location-based services and, on the other hand, the pay-per-use policies are considered as a fair and transparent way of calculating tariffs," says Amselem. "Customers realize that they pay for their own risk and not for the risk of others. With the black box on board everybody can show he or she is a safe driver and, as a result, gets access to significantly better conditions."

Jacques Amselem, CEO of Allianz Telematics (photo: Allianz)

Jacques Amselem, CEO of Allianz Telematics: "With the black box on board everybody can show he or she is a safe driver and, as a result, gets access to significantly better conditions." (Source: Allianz)

The system is currently in use in 80,000 cars in nine countries, and its use is spreading. As part of this trend, Allianz has developed a strong infrastructure to support  telematics. Customers are also encouraged by the basic principle that the data collected is not used against the customer. As Amselem says, "We believe that our mission is to provide protection to our customers, not to replace the police."

Telematics also offers retail customers emergency/accident and breakdown assistance, stolen vehicle tracking and recovery. Fleet managers can additionally monitor their vehicles and thus increase the efficiency of their business, providing economic advantages for everyone. More innovations are on the way for all customers.

You can view the full interview on the Allianz Knowledge site

The black box insurance rewards drivers who avoid risky night drives.

The black box insurance rewards drivers who avoid risky night drives.

As with all content published on this site, these statements are subject to our Forward Looking Statement disclaimer:

Silke Bonarius
Allianz SE
Phone +49.89.3800-17790
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