Technology to Tackle Texting and Driving Problem

Esurance, a direct-to-consumer insurance company, is rolling out a new teen driver safety program that can prevent teens from texting while driving and give parents feedback about their teen’s driving behavior.

Because texting and driving requires a combination of visual, manual, and cognitive attention, it is particularly dangerous for teenage drivers.

Esurance is tackling this issue with technology that can actually be part of the solution and spearheading a program that lets parents know how their teen is doing on the road so they can promote safer, more responsible driving habits.

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When parents enroll in Esurance DriveSafe, they’ll receive a small telematics device to install in the onboard diagnostics port of the car their teen drives most, along with instructions on how to download the Esurance DriveSafe app onto their teen’s smartphone.

Using Bluetooth and cellular technology, the device and smartphone app work together to help monitor the teen’s driving habits and limit texting, web browsing, and cell phone use when the car is in motion.

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Once the device is activated, parents can go to www.esurance.com/drive-safe and access their personalized Esurance DriveSafe site.

From there, parents can set preferences, opt in for customized alerts about unsafe driving behaviors like driving past curfew or speeding, and review trip details to see where their teen may need some extra coaching.

Parents also can compare their teen’s driving habits to those of the average Esurance DriveSafe teen driver.