FORT WORTH, TEXAS — April 19, 2016 —Electric Insurance Company has adopted the “Live Alerts” stolen vehicle identification and recovery system after saving more than $30,000 in costs associated with a vehicle theft claim in just the first four days of implementing the software into their process.
Stolen vehicles cost the insurance industry $4.5 billion in 2014, making effective vehicle location and recovery tools a major advantage to carriers. The company agreed to the use of the tool after investigating new vehicle recovery technology.
It worked with Texas-based Digital Recognition Network (DRN), which developed Live Alerts to address vehicle theft claim losses. Integrated with Google Maps technology, Live Alerts provides round-the-clock notice to carriers when a vehicle on the company’s stolen vehicles list is identified.
According to Electric Insurance’s vice president of Customer Operations, Maureen Hegarty, a major factor in the decision to move forward with the system was Live Alert’s highly efficient, no-cost process to upload the company’s stolen vehicle data — a competitive difference that made DRN stand out during the review process.
Results were immediately positive. Electric Insurance uploaded a list of stolen vehicles and quickly received a Live Alert report indicating the location of a stolen BMW. The report’s Historical Vehicle Location section showed that the car had been at the same location for a week, a positive indicator for recovery.
Hegarty’s team was impressed. “DRN’s stolen vehicle location abilities were as fast and effective as stated. We went to the site, identified the car and called the police — the vehicle was recovered the same day. DRN gave us actionable data we could not get anywhere else.”
The speed of recovery was key: the $32,000 stolen vehicle claim was due to be paid the same day the vehicle was located, saving Electric Insurance a significant payout.
Chris Metaxas, chief executive officer at DRN, says this exercise is a perfect example of how Live Alerts provides a competitive edge to carriers in this highly competitive industry. “Electric Insurance’s results perfectly demonstrate how DRN’s vehicle location data-driven approach to finding stolen vehicles delivers a solid ROI — even on one vehicle.”
Metaxas goes on to point out, “As thieves get more sophisticated, insurance carriers need smarter, faster ways to recover stolen vehicles. DRN’s vehicle location data is the game-changer the insurance industry needs, just as it revolutionized the auto recovery industry with over 661,000 in asset recoveries equating to more than $5 billion in value to auto lenders.”
About Live Alerts
Live Alerts uses DRN’s license plate recognition (LPR) technology to help locate stolen vehicles. Carriers upload their stolen vehicle hotlists and get real-time alerts of vehicle sightings including plate and car images, an interactive map of sightings, date and time of each sighting, GPS coordinates and sighting addresses. With over 102,000,000 vehicle sightings every month across the U.S., DRN on average sees more than 10% of vehicles over 180 days old. These are sightings carriers cannot get anywhere else. Live Alerts can be added to a carrier’s existing stolen vehicle recovery process, working with established stolen vehicle investigation vendors and platforms. There is no financial obligation to get started; carriers only pay for validated sightings.
About DRN
DRN is a leading provider of data and analytics to the Financial Services, Insurance and Asset Recovery industries. Our solutions enable our clients to more effectively optimize their portfolios, reduce losses, detect fraud, and manage risk. An industry pioneer in vehicle location data and license plate recognition technology and services, DRN covers every major metropolitan area in the United States and maintains the largest vehicle location database under strict standards of privacy, compliance, and data integrity. To find out more, contact hford@drndata.com, visit us online at www.drndata.com, or call us at (817) 877-0077.
About Electric Insurance Company
Electric Insurance Company (https://www.electricinsurance.com/) is a national, leading provider of personal and commercial lines insurance products. Established in 1966 to specifically serve GE employees, Electric Insurance now extends its superior personal lines products and outstanding service to discerning consumers inside and outside of the GE community. Electric Insurance Company – with a credit rating of “A” from A.M. Best – offers its auto, homeowners, condo, renters, and umbrella insurance through the Web, select Independent Agents, or by phone at 800.227.2757.
