REL Relx Plc

UK Motor Insurance Providers To Start Testing Vehicle Safety Data for Pricing

LONDON, June 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Motor insurance providers across the U.K. can now start testing LexisNexis® Vehicle Build, a new solution to better evaluate specific Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS)ⁱ, to support pricing and underwriting. LexisNexis® Risk Solutions, a leading data, analytics and technology provider for the insurance industry, is inviting motor insurers to test the data solution against real-world performance and claims data, prior to launch later this year.

To date, it has been a challenge for insurers to identify exactly what ADAS features a specific vehicle is equipped with when writing a motor insurance policy.  This is because each car manufacturer has created their own unique terminology, definitions and naming structures – sometimes releasing multiple features within the same model year. In addition, many items are chosen as optional extras when a vehicle is purchased from new.

To address this challenge, data scientists at LexisNexis Risk Solutions have developed an ADAS classification system using machine learning to scan millions of lines of car manufacturer vehicle data to logically sequence and classify vehicle safety features and component's intended operation or purpose.

This classification system provides the foundation for LexisNexis Vehicle Build.  Access to vehicle safety data will help insurance providers factor for their presence throughout the customer journey - in pricing, mid-term adjustments and renewals - and establish the differences in risk profile associated with the vehicles that have these safety features.  

LexisNexis Vehicle Build will help insurers understand how specific safety features behave, for example if a feature will provide an alert or warning to the vehicle's driver when a potential danger or hazard is detected. It will also allow insurers to understand the purpose of features.

Carla Hopkins, Senior Vertical Market Manager, LexisNexis Risk Solutions said: "Car manufacturers continually develop and deploy new ADAS features and promote their efficacy in reducing accidents.  We therefore want to give the insurance industry the confidence to price or create products with a new level of vehicle build information to reflect the increasing penetration of ADAS in the UK car parc.  We have invested significantly, gathering and normalising ADAS data, looking at it through an underwriting lens, to give the industry new vehicle-centric insights for pricing and underwriting."

The solution, available later this year, will provide insurers with access to ADAS features at a VIN level, currently present on approximately 70% of new passenger vehicles in the U.K. market.

Key Points:

• SMMT research shows 7 in 10ⁱⁱ new cars in the UK have driver assistance systems and over half have adaptive cruise control
• Vehicle Build has been created using machine learning analysis of 17-digit specific manufacturer data used to create standardisation, with car safety features grouped by purpose
• Vehicle Build provides Definitions, Behaviour, Purpose of any given ADAS feature and how it specifically impacts driving safety;
• Convenient access to standardised, normalised data, regardless of car manufacturer or model for use within insurers' existing workflows;
• Insights represent first step in insurance rating for the effectiveness of the latest vehicle safety features in reducing collisions and insurance claims
• Development will play a key role in helping insurers reward drivers for their investment in car safety features

About LexisNexis Risk Solutions 
LexisNexis® Risk Solutions harnesses the power of data and advanced analytics to provide insights that help businesses and governmental entities reduce risk and improve decisions to benefit people around the globe. We provide data and technology solutions for a wide range of industries including insurance, financial services, healthcare and government. Headquartered in metro Atlanta, Georgia, we have offices throughout the world and are part of RELX (LSE: REL/NYSE: RELX), a global provider of information-based and analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers across industries. For more information, please visit www.risk.lexisnexis.com and www.relx.com.  

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Media contacts:
Alison Reeson, Parm Heer, Jane Lewis at HSL
0208 977 9132
lnrs@harrisonsadler.com

Regina Haas
Senior Director, Global Media and Analyst Relations
Insurance, Connected Car and Coplogic Solutions
LexisNexis Risk Solutions 
O: +1.678.694.3569
M: +1.678.896.1463
Regina.Haas@lexisnexisrisk.com

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