

New York State OKs insurer’s tracking device that nabs teen driver-texters - JumpCrisscross
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/albany/2013/12/8537613/cuomo-oks-insurers-device-nabs-teen-driver-texters

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doki_pen
Offered for free? Really? Should the insurance company be sharing some of the
increased safety savings with their customers?

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rtpg
well you get lower premiums by being in less wrecks, in theory.

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SubZero
Does anyone else see the issue of how easy it would be to lean down, unplug
this thing from the ODBC port, and toss it to the ground? That would kill any
tracking or blocking.

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teraflop
That's answered in the FAQ:

> If the Esurance DriveSafe device is removed, you'll receive an alert.

[http://www.esurance.com/drive-safe/faq](http://www.esurance.com/drive-
safe/faq)

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goldenkey
How is this possible without a jailbreak? Must be an Android app.

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thaumasiotes
It's not an app. It's a piece of hardware; it's also supposed to track
speeding and braking behavior.

If it actually prevents phones within the car from receiving calls, I don't
see a lot of parents installing it...

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maxerickson
It's a device and app:

[http://www.esurance.com/drive-safe](http://www.esurance.com/drive-safe)

That page doesn't say much, but it does say that various things can be blocked
while still allowing phone calls (which can be restricted to certain numbers).

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thaumasiotes
There's a great footnote to the app:

> *When the vehicle is in motion, teens with iPhones® will see a banner on
> their home screen, reminding them not to use their phone while driving.
> iPhones do not support restriction of phone functionality.

A later bit of fine print says:

> The information provided by Esurance DriveSafe is for customer use only and
> will not influence your rate in any way. Personalized data generated by this
> program is hosted by a third party and will never be shared with Esurance.
> Esurance DriveSafe is available in all states where we do business except MA
> and PA.

This immediately made me wonder about being compelled to turn over your data
in court if you do get into a crash.

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AlisdairSH
So, it appears to work with Androids (only). Not iPhones, and not dumb-phones?

Seems pretty useless.

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blahedo
How do they tell whether the teen is driving or a passenger?

