ingenie press pack
Highlights

Groundbreaking insurance brand for 17 to 25 year-olds

Uses a black box to provide car insurance based on individual driver
behaviour

ingenie is building a community of better drivers – providing regular
feedback via a mobile app to help them improve

ingenie is one of the first insurers to offer quarterly premium adjustments, so
customers don’t have to wait a year to reduce the cost of their insurance

ingenie has reduced traditional marketing costs by communicating with
customers via mobile and social media

Investors include England football star turned broadcaster Gary Lineker,
who is ingenie’s brand ambassador

ingenie’s policies are underwritten by two of the UK’s leading insurers – RSA
and Ageas

Established high-profile affinity partnerships including Vauxhall and RED
Driving School

After a year with ingenie, customers’ renewal premiums were on average
£954 (49%) cheaper than their starting price

70% of ingenie customers have received a quarterly discount for better
driving
ingenie press pack
ingenie press pack
ingenie is a ground-breaking young driver insurance brand that is shaking up the
market. The company targets 17 to 25 year-olds, traditionally a high-risk group of
inexperienced drivers who have been penalised by sky-high motor insurance
premiums.
Unlike traditional insurers, ingenie treats the customer as an individual. A small
black box is discreetly fitted out of sight in the policyholder’s car. The box provides
a vast amount of real-time data on how the car’s being driven - including speed,
acceleration, braking and cornering. Data from the box is collected at 10Hz (10
times per second) and is run through hundreds of algorithms that have been
developed and calibrated in partnership with the world-leading Driving Research
Group at Cranfield University. This creates a clear picture of an individual’s ‘driving
DNA’ including their attitude to driving.
ingenie offers new customers lower insurance prices because underwriters look
positively on young people who agree to have the box fitted. ingenie was one of
the first to introduce quarterly premium adjustments based on how people drive.
Currently discounts of up to 10% during the year are available for driving well. On
the flip side, to deter poor driving, ingenie can also increase the premiums for
drivers who consistently drive recklessly (by a maximum of 10%).
This means that ingenie rewards better driving and deters those who take risks on
the road. It’s a staggering statistic, but according to the Driving Standards Agency,
1 in 5 young drivers has a crash in the first six months of driving. ingenie’s research
suggests that whilst skill behind the wheel is required, it is not enough on its own –
what is key is attitude to the road, and this is the cause of many young driver
crashes. ingenie tries to help young drivers by giving feedback on their driving
using a smartphone app. It gives easy to understand ‘traffic light’ feedback in
Twitter-style messages.
For young drivers who drive dangerously, (for example, exceeding the speed limit
by 30mph or more), there is a ‘black message’ system which will alert ingenie to
contact the customer by phone to discuss their driving. In the rare event that the
driver still does not improve, ingenie reserves the right to give notice of
cancellation of a policy.
So ingenie’s aim is to encourage better driving and discourage unsafe driving.
ingenie doesn’t focus on small isolated incidents (we all make mistakes) and is
more interested in identifying unsafe or poor driving trends.
2
ingenie press pack
In 2012, the company’s pilot year of operation, ingenie went from strength-tostrength. Awareness of the brand and of the concept of black box insurance is
being boosted in no small part by ingenie ambassador Gary Lineker:
“As a father of four, with two sons on the road, I understand as well as anyone the
anxiety for parents and excitement for teens when they’re behind the wheel for
the first time. I think ingenie’s great at addressing both issues. Their premiums are
sensible, plus I can easily keep an eye on how my boys drive to see that they’re
being safe and improving their driving. Not bad at all...” Gary Lineker – ingenie
ambassador
The brand is on the side of young drivers. Their driving data is protected, although
it can be shared with parents with the agreement of both parties. Unlike most
other insurers ingenie has a community of drivers who they are constantly in touch
with - not just when something’s gone wrong or their policy is due for renewal. As a
digital brand, ingenie communicates via social media rather than just call centres
(although it’s always possible to speak to someone, too.) In addition to providing
customer service on Facebook and Twitter, ingenie has orchestrated social media
campaigns including #DontDriveDistracted - which reached 1.95 million on Twitter
and raised the awareness of the dangers of distraction at the wheel and
#MyFirstCar (reaching 2.1 million), which saw young people telling the story of their
first car.
Core to ingenie’s values is a commitment to improving safety and reducing
crashes among young drivers. After one year, evidence suggests that ingenie is
making a real difference, with 70% of young drivers receiving a discount for their
driving.
As a business, ingenie is backed and underwritten by two of the country’s leading
insurers Ageas and RSA. Additional private investors include Sir Martin Broughton (the
Chairman of British Airways and former President of the CBI) and Sir Frank Williams
(the founder of Williams F1) who is passionate about road safety after a road crash
left him paralysed and in a wheelchair.
ingenie is the brainchild of technology expert and entrepreneur, Richard King,
who is founder and CEO. Richard’s standout track record includes being cofounder and executive director of the FTSE listed Innovation Group, a company
that grew rapidly and went public just two years after it was founded, peaking at
a market cap of over £1 billion. ingenie also benefits from other very high-profile
names from the world of business and finance, including Steve Broughton, the
former MD of RSA, who is Chairman of Tesco Underwriting Ltd Chairman and is
3
ingenie press pack
co-founder and Chairman of ingenie. Also from the world of insurance, Chris
McKee, former Executive Director of Direct Line, is ingenie’s Chief Operating
Officer.
In its first year of full operation, ingenie gained significant affinity partnerships with
well-established brands, including Vauxhall and RED Driving School. Launching
Vauxhall Insurance powered by ingenie, the company is reaching out to young
drivers purchasing a new or used Vauxhall from any of the brand’s 600 UK
dealerships to help them leave the forecourt for the first time with the best value,
safest cover. RED Driving School, the UK’s largest, is committed to providing their
learner drivers with the highest-quality of instruction, which fits perfectly with
ingenie’s values, so ingenie will offer an additional discount to any new
policyholders who learn with RED.
The solid progress of the business has led to strong results after year one of
operation, with excellent renewal rates, and is now ramping up growth including
launching on its first comparison website MoneySupermarket.
“We are delighted that ingenie enjoyed a very successful first year of full operation
and that we have made such an impression on the insurance industry. We’re
confident our brand will continue to grow as more young people and their parents
discover our better, safer, cheaper way to get car insurance.” Richard King –
ingenie Founder & CEO
Ingenie Ambassador
Gary Lineker
England football legend turned leading sports broadcaster Gary Lineker has been
supporting ingenie since its inception. As a parent of four boys (two of them
already on the road), he totally understood the problem that ingenie’s trying to
solve in car insurance. His exemplary record on the pitch during his playing career
and weekly appearances in most British household’s fronting BBC’s Match of the
Day makes him a trusted figure for families. He’s also liked by younger people and
recognised as ‘the crisp man’ following a 15-year, over 100 adverts association
with Walkers Crisps. He has 1.4 million followers on Twitter.
Tyger Drew-Honey
Tyger is a 17 year old TV actor and one of the stars of Outnumbered, a British
sitcom that’s aired on BBC One since 2007. ingenie is using video and social media
to share Tyger’s experiences as he learns to drive and takes to the road for the first
time. He has 127,000 followers on Twitter.
4