Car insurance rates are on the rise, and drivers looking for a way to counter these increases may want to consider participating in a telematics program. These app-based programs are increasingly common with major insurers, and one of the first companies to bring them to the market was Progressive. Its telematics program, Snapshot, tracks your driving habits in real time and adjusts your premium accordingly for a more personalized approach to insurance pricing.
What is Progressive Snapshot?
Snapshot may be an excellent way for safe Progressive drivers to save money on their car insurance. This telematics program logs your driving habits using an app on your phone or a device that you plug into your car. Snapshot monitors your driving behaviors, observes the times of day you drive, tracks how often you use your vehicle and notes your cell phone usage while driving.
Snapshot is free for Progressive policyholders, and according to Progressive’s website, you could earn an average savings of $94 just for signing up (unless you live in New York or Hawaii). The program is available countrywide, except for in California. Progressive also offers an additional program, Snapshot ProView, for commercial vehicles.
How does Progressive Snapshot work?
There are two ways to participate in Progressive Snapshot. You can ask the company to send you a small device that you install in the OBD2 port in your car, which is usually found under the steering wheel, or you can download the Snapshot app, which is available for both iOS and Android.
The app or device tracks certain prescribed driving factors, like speed, braking and mobile phone use. GPS technology makes this simple. Smartphone sensors record this information and transmit it to Progressive.
While telematics programs do require you to give up a certain level of privacy, there are ways to customize the program for your lifestyle. You can pause the system if you are a passenger in the car, rather than the driver, or if you are going on vacation and don’t wish to have the monitoring occur. You can also correct certain data points through your Progressive account on the mobile app, as well as view the collected information and even get driving tips and pointers.
Does Progressive Snapshot actually decrease rates?
Snapshot can either decrease or increase your rate — it depends on how well (or poorly) you drive.
Most new Progressive customers can get a small participation discount just for signing up. Then, you must use Snapshot via the mobile app or plug-in device throughout your policy term (six months or a year, depending on your contract). If Snapshot indicates that you are a safe driver during that time, Progressive will replace the participation discount with the Snapshot discount and apply it to your renewal term.
On the other hand, if Snapshot proves you to be a risky driver, your rates may go up. Progressive states that about 20 percent of its Snapshot participants experience a rate increase due to their driving habits.
What does Progressive Snapshot track?
Snapshot analyzes your driving habits to produce your driving reports. It also uses the data to resolve auto claims, as well as for underwriting assessments and development and research purposes. Among the driving characteristics that Snapshot monitors are:
- Braking and accelerating: Snapshot looks for easy acceleration without jack-rabbit starts and smooth braking. Avoid slamming on your brakes unless necessary to avoid an accident.
- Time of day: Avoid driving late at night, particularly between midnight and 4 a.m. On weekends, those hours are considered to be some of the most dangerous times to drive, according to the National Safety Council. If you must regularly drive during these hours, Snapshot may not be a good fit for you.
- Mileage: Snapshot rewards those who are relatively low-mileage drivers or who frequently carpool, because being on the road less often means a lower likelihood of accidents.
- Using your mobile phone: If you are using the mobile app, Snapshot can determine when you have been texting or making phone calls. Avoid these activities to remain safe and help increase your discount. Note that Snapshot only considers phone use in some states.
- Speeding: Driving above the posted speed limit will be noted by Snapshot. Specifically, the app uses GPS to monitor your speed.
If you have a problem with the issues described above, you might not want to use Snapshot. However, if you are a good driver who avoids dangerous habits, Snapshot could save you money.
The Snapshot mobile app installed on your smartphone stores analytics and driving data for a few days. When you delete the app, you also delete the stored analytics and data. Progressive retains analytics information and driving data transmitted to its Snapshot system indefinitely.
According to Snapshot’s privacy statement, Progressive retains the right to share your Snapshot data with third parties:
- To service the insurance policy
- To detect or prevent fraudulent activity
- For marketing and research purposes
- As permitted and when required by law for a police investigation or when subpoenaed for a civil lawsuit
- To government insurance departments to support rates
- To Progressive’s service provider
- To other insurers or attorneys to resolve claims or litigation
The terms allow Progressive to share depersonalized data to more third parties. Progressive can use data from all drivers on your policy for marketing purposes. Users can choose to restrict the use of their data for certain types of marketing.
How much can I save with Progressive Snapshot?
Progressive policyholders who sign up for Snapshot may be able to maximize their savings by practicing the following driving habits:
- Limit hard brakes and accelerations: By avoiding stepping on the gas and slamming on the brakes, you may boost your Snapshot discount.
- Avoid late-night driving: Driving during less risky times of the day can generate more savings.
- Drive less: By driving lower miles or carpooling you can save more.
- Stay off your mobile phone: By avoiding phone calls and texting behind the wheel, you can qualify for additional savings.
If your safe driving earns you a Snapshot discount, you’ll see it on your next renewal after signing up for the program. The average Snapshot discount is $231, according to Progressive, but beware — on average, 2 out of 10 drivers experience an increase in premium due to driving habits that are considered risky.
Who is the Progressive Snapshot app a good option for?
If you are wondering whether Progressive Snapshot is right for you, consider your overall driving behavior and habits. If you are generally a safe, careful driver who does not often drive during late night hours and avoids hard braking and accelerating, it might be worth it. If you don’t drive frequently, perhaps if you’re retired or work from home, Snapshot may be an especially good option.
You can always try Snapshot and unenroll if you do not like the experience or if you see your rate increase. You may want to consider taking a defensive driving course to help improve your skills behind the wheel before enrolling to increase your likelihood of experiencing savings.
What are real-life customers saying about Progressive Snapshot?
Reading Snapshot Progressive reviews from current or former policyholders is an excellent way to gain insight into the reality of a usage-based insurance plan. Our insurance editorial team sourced comments from Reddit to provide a synopsis of firsthand experiences. Reddit allows users to post questions and comments about any product and other users can chime in and share their experiences as well.
The opinions about Progressive’s Snapshot are mixed. Policyholders like getting a partial discount for signing up for the program but want more clarity on improving their scores. Many reviewers feel that the app is overly sensitive to sudden braking and that their car insurance rates have increased unfairly or don’t save them enough money. One thing to keep in mind is that car insurance premiums with most carriers have dramatically increased nationwide, so the increase Snapshot users are seeing might not be related to the app itself.
Reddit user 1
Date: 5/4/2024
“Agent and Progressive customer here. I’ve written countless policies with and without Snapshot and I’ve also tried it out myself as I wanted to know exactly what it was I was selling to people.
Unfortunately, the problem with the app is that it has no way to discern that a sudden stop or sudden acceleration is necessary to prevent an accident. It lacks context which means that if you don’t drive a very specific way, you will see rate increases.”
via Reddit community
Reddit user 2
Date: 11/15/2023
“I’ve had about 116 ‘trips’ and I’ve had one hard brake, when it beeped I was surprised because it was not that hard of a brake, but I guess it was harder that I’ve braked since this thing got plugged in. So now i know what it takes to make the thing go off. In total I am at about 14 hours of driving, with 322 miles and I currently have an “A” rating. Have not made it beep since (Nov 2nd) Knock-on-wood.”
via Reddit community
These varied experiences underscore the subjective nature of insurance satisfaction and the importance of assessing your individual needs.
*The quotes and citations included on this page have been verified by our editorial team and are accurate as of the posting date. Outlinked content may contain views and opinions that do not reflect the views and opinions of Bankrate.
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