Cheap insurance for autobrake

Insurers will offer cheaper car insurance to vehicles fitted with autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems from as early as October, Auto Express can exclusively reveal.

The safety technology uses cameras, radar and sensors to detect if a car is about to crash and then hits the brakes. Euro NCAP – which has today announced it will include AEB systems in its five star rating scheme from 2014 – estimates 8,000 lives a year could be saved in Europe if every car had such a system.

And the technology has already proved so effective that insurers plan to reduce the group rating of any car a car fitted with AEB as standard.

Matthew Avery, head of research and motor insurers' research centre Thatcham, said: “We’ve got test data showing that a 27 per cent real-world reduction in crashes for vehicles fitted with AEB. We’re seeing that these AEB systems have such a huge effect that insurers can offer lower prices.”

The Association of British Insurers’ Group Rating Panel – which determines the insurance rating for each vehicle in the UK based on research data from Thatcham – has provisionally agreed to cut premiums for models with AEB systems tested and approved by Thatcham. Any variant in a model range that includes the technology as standard will see its rating reduced by up to four insurance groups – although insurers will still set premiums based on an individual's circumstances.

The insurance industry and manufacturers have tentatively agreed to implement the new ratings from 1 October, although this date is still in doubt. But Thatcham believes the new regime will be in place by the end of the year at the latest. 

Fore more details on this story, check out next week’s issue of Auto Express, out 20 June 2012.