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We’re proud to be revolutionizing car insurance here at Metromile, making car ownership more seamless and affordable. Not only did we want to shake up an age old industry, but we also wanted to address the fairness factor: why should the majority of low-mileage drivers subsidize the minority? If you don’t drive much, you shouldn’t pay much.

This message has definitely resonated with many people, and we wanted to make sure that our mission and our offering could clearly be understood on our website. As savvy consumers, we’ve grown to appreciate and expect clean and simple designs that get to the point while still connecting with us emotionally. The new Metromile website clearly shows how much money you could save with pay-per-mile insurance, and also how we enable a smarter driving experience.

So what exactly has changed? We’ve improved how you get your insurance quote so you can see your potential savings sooner. Updated navigation makes it easier to find the answers you need, whether you are wondering how our app can really help you find your car (it can!) or if we are judging your driving habits (we aren’t!). We believe that cars should support your busy lives, not hinder them.

The insurance revolution doesn’t stop at a new website; there are lots of exciting updates that we can’t wait to share with you. We can’t reveal everything right now but we can give you a hint: East coast expansion. Questions? Please visit our help center.

Spring break is getting closer and for many people, that means road trip! Road trips used to be a lot more DIY than they are now (remember paper maps!?) — Our cell phones have changed that. These days, the connected car is making driving, including long road trips, much easier and enjoyable but it’s still a luxury that many don’t have. Metromile, however, is on a mission to empower drivers by creating a more connected and informed driving experience by putting the right tools in drivers hands. 

As we approach Spring Break, especially with road trips in mind, Metromile offers benefits that will help take the guesswork out of car travel but there’s a few other must have’s for every road trip:

• Your cell phone – make sure you can check in with family and friends on the road or have it handy in case of an emergency. Plus, there’s fun apps to help you find the cheapest gas in the area or keep up with your MPG, trip logs and car health with the Metromile app (and plugged in Pulse device)
• A phone charger
• Water – stay hydrated!
• Roadside assistance – You never know what could happen on the road. Make sure you have the number ready on who to call. Services like AAA are great to keep you protected on the road and Metromile insurance customers receive free roadside assistance no matter where they are on the road!
• A second set of keys– give them to one of your passengers to hold onto in case you get locked out.
• Change your oil before the trip and check tire pressure – it’s always important to check the basics of your car health before you head out on a road trip. Metromile users will always have access to their car health via the app and if there’s a problem, they’ll be alerted.
• Bring insurance information – keep a copy of your insurance card in your glove box! Metromile insurance customers can always access a copy of their policy directly via their Metromile App so there’s less panic if there’s trouble.
• A road emergency kit – It’s a good idea to throw in jumper cables, a gas can, road flares and the like just in case. It’s also not a bad idea to pack a medical emergency kit even if you find you just need an Advil or a Band-Aid.
• Film for your camera

Enjoy the road and wherever it may take you!

We recently received this letter from customers who had their car stolen (boo!) but because Metromile was able to help locate the vehicle, they were able to get it back (yay!) with help from the police.

Hi Metromile,

I wanted to write you a note to thank you for your amazing product last night. Our car was stolen early Wednesday morning. The thieves took it and went to Potrero Hill, Bayview, Excelsior, and back to Bayview. They were apprehended in a dead end in Bayview, inside our car. They had loads of stolen goods in the car – our and others – and had also parked some other stolen cars in the area.

The police are ecstatic. They rarely catch the perps, so they’re hopeful this could blow the ring of car thieves wide open. And we have Metromile to thank for all of it. You see, when I noticed the car was stolen, I immediately opened the app and saw it was in the Bayview. I called the police and told dispatch of its location, but I had to call back several times because the vehicle was moving. Eventually two police officers showed up at our house and followed along with the moving dot in the app. They radioed to other officers every time it moved.

We realized there was a bit of a delay in the live location, so my partner Ryan called Alex at Metromile to see if she could get more accurate readings. Alex was amazing. Even though she couldn’t help us get a live location, it seemed like her dot was a bit ahead of ours. With her help, the police were able to pounce as soon as the car came to a rest in Bayview. The other car will be returned to their owners, along with the stolen goods. And it’s possible that many future crimes have been prevented. I’ve taken screen grabs of all the trips shown in the app since our car was stolen, and they will be used to solve other crimes and as evidence against the criminals that did this. None of it would have happened if I didn’t have Metromile. So, you have our sincere gratitude for the amazing product that you provide.

Sincerely,

Jordan V and Ryan H

~~~

The claims process is important when it comes to picking your auto insurance. Customers purchase a policy in the hopes of never actually needing it. Buy it and forget it. But that’s not always how life works.

Unfortunately, things happen. Your car breaks down, leaving you stranded on the side of the road. A passing semi-truck flings a rock into your brand new windshield. Or worst of all, you’re involved in a major accident. In those moments, all you want is for the money you’ve been forking over every month for the last umpteen years to kick in to ensure everything is handled quickly, efficiently, and without hassle.

Metromile may be a relatively new company, but there’s nothing amateur about how we treat our customers. Our customer experience advocates go above and beyond to ensure the customer’s needs are met whether it’s answering questions through the quote process, making changes to an active account, or getting your claim handled from beginning to end.

Most insurance companies offer 24/7 claims support. Metromile is no different. If you call our claims number (888-215-9176) at 2am (in any time zone), we’ll be there to help you file your claim. Claims related incidents rarely happen at convenient times. That’s why we’re available all day, every day, to make sure you get the help you need.

We don’t stop there. Not only is a claims department available 24/7, but we also assign a customer experience advocate to ensure that your claims process goes smoothly from start to finish. Your advocate can not influence the outcome of your claim but helps make sure you have a good experience – from understanding what is going on to timing of claims resolution.

The claims process should never add anxiety to an already stressful experience. At Metromile, we promise to do everything we can to get you back on the road as quickly and safely as possible.

Questions? Please visit our help center.

Happy New Year!

If you’re like most people, you’ve probably got a list of resolutions for 2015 already. Here are ways Metromile can help you on two of the most popular things people hope to achieve each year.

EXERCISE

Let’s face it, exercise takes time:  planning when to go, packing your duffel bag with everything you need, traveling to and from the gym, and of course, working out! It doesn’t take much to craft excuses for why we stop participating in sports activities or hitting the gym. However, recent studies have shown that even short bursts of activity can go a long way. 

• FIND OPPORTUNITIES. With the Metromile app, you can see all of your trips – short and long. If you’re noticing a pattern of short trips, maybe 5 miles or under, consider taking those opportunities to run or bike next time. You’ll not only give yourself the chance to squeeze in more cardio, but you’ll give Mother Nature a little break too.
• ACCOUNTABILITY. Because you can label your trip endpoints in the app, why not create a label for “Gym”, “Bootcamp”, “Yoga”, or whatever physical activity you attend. Give yourself a goal to achieve a minimum number of trips per month, and hold yourself accountable! Maybe go a step further and obligate yourself to send the screenshot of monthly trips to a trainer or a friend who will champion your goals. 

SAVE MONEY

Helping people save money when it comes to their cars is what fuels us here at Metromile! How do we help?

• Save on maintenance costs
  • KNOW. Because we can decode your check engine lights, you can figure out what’s going on with your car’s health sooner and get issues addressed before they become more serious (and potentially more expensive).
  • LEARN. We have an on-staff mechanic who is ready to answer your maintenance questions! Just tap on “Ask our Mechanic” in the app (under Car Health) and you’ll be prompted to send a message via email right from your device. Arming yourself with knowledge about your car will equip you for those cost negotiations next time you bring your car in for service.
  • PREPARE. Running your gas tank close to empty could cost you in more ways than one. Keep tabs on your fuel levels with the app and try not to let the tank dip below 1/4 full.
• Track tax-deductible trips
  • Categorize your work-related trips as Business with our app. This will make it easier come tax-time to identify expenses that can be included in your deductions.  
• Save on insurance
  • Did you know that you can switch at any time? You don’t have to wait out your 6-month term if you want to change providers. Your payments can be pro-rated at whatever point you decide to transition.
  • If you’re not driving a ton of miles, per-mile insurance could be just the thing for you. Get a quote to see what you could be saving. If you’ve already been using the app, check out the in-app calculator that estimates your savings based on the miles you’ve driven.

Sticking to resolutions can be challenging, but we hope that the Metromile experience gives you tangible ways to start and maintain good habits throughout the year (and beyond)!

Here at Metromile, we always appreciate hearing from our customers and how our work has touched their lives. Thanks Ken!

We have been with Metromile for about a year and a half and could not be more pleased. Our initial reasons for signing up with them was their rate structure based on actual miles driven, since we drive far less than the average driver. A secondary reason was that Metromile offered a much better rate for our teenage son who was on our policy at the time. 

We also really like the feature where we can track all of our trips. It came in very handy recently when my wife dropped a family member off at the airport. Somehow, she lost the parking ticket receipt so they charged her the full day rate. she was able to download and print the trip data that showed she was only there for less than a half hour and was able to get a refund.

Customer service has been top notch. Whenever we have called with a question, we get to speak with someone right away without having to navigate through a menu first. The customer service reps have always been able to answer questions and make changes to our policy with no hassle.

The true test with an insurance company, however, is will they be there for you when you need them. Based on my experience, I can unequivocally say yes. A little more than a year ago, I was involved in a crash when someone ran a stop sign and T-boned my vehicle. Fortunately I was unhurt, but the car was disabled as a result of the crash. While waiting for the police to arrive, I called Metromile to inform them of the crash. A few minutes later I got a call from Sean Griswold, the Vice President of Customer Experience and Claims. He immediately asked if I was injured, and I could tell that his concern for my well being was genuine. 

Sean and I had spoken before and he was always very helpful. He immediately arranged for a rental car for me to use to get to work, and the car was ready before my vehicle was towed back to the dealership. 

The claims process took weeks to finally resolve, in part because the other driver who was at fault did not have adequate insurance. A second complication was that this was an almost new vehicle and a new model that year. The extent of the damage needed to be determined in order to decide whether it could be repaired or not. Throughout the process, Sean and the claims adjuster assigned to my case kept me informed on an almost daily basis and provided documentation promptly to expedite the claim.

In the end it was decided that the vehicle was a total loss, and again, Metromile was ready and was able to transition my policy as soon as my replacement vehicle was at the dealer. 

Would I recommend Metromile? Absolutely! Great rates for someone who drives less, great customer service, useful features such as trip tracking, and most importantly, they are there for you when you really need them. What more could you want?

Organizing and understanding your trips just got a whole lot more awesome.

We’re happy to introduce NEW Trip features: categories & labels!

END-POINT LABELS

The names for your start and end points can now be customized to whatever you’d like – e.g. Home, Work, Gym. Gone are vague city locations – you can now label your trip origins and destinations to words that make more sense to you! After all, we live to make your driving life easier!

1. Start by tapping on the city name (each end-point is lightly underlined)

2. Type in your custom label for the location. When you first start, there won’t be any choices, however, In the future, you’ll be able to choose from the list you’ve built. There is no maximum on how many locations you can store. 

3. Tap on “Apply” to set the label for that place. Going forward, the Metromile app will remember these named locations and automatically label for you. You can edit at any time (also under Settings), and the app will adjust to these new changes. 

CATEGORIES

Not all trips are created equal right? Some are for work while others are for fun. You can tag your trips with a category and filter just for these specific names. We supply 5 categories to start: Business, Commute, Errand, Leisure, Road Trip. You can change these any time to categories that help you organize all your trips or add completely new categories. Maybe you’ll want Fitness, Volunteering, or Carpool?

1. Tap on the icon of a tag (if it’s unnamed, it’ll say “add category”)

2. Choose one of the pre-existing categories by tapping on the white circle. Or add your own by tapping on “add new category” at the bottom of the list. You can also edit your choices from Settings.

3. Hit “Apply” and the category will be added for that individual trip.

CATEGORY FILTERS

1. To filter trips, tap on the gray funnel icon at the top of the Trips screen.

2. Select your choices from the right side. (You can also edit your list from Settings.)

3. Tap “Apply” at the bottom of the list or just tap outside of the menu. The funnel icon turns green when a filter is applied.

ENJOY! We hope these new features help you plan and optimize your trips better. Maybe you’ll notice some low-mileage trips and decide to bike or walk instead. Or you’ll finally figure out the best time to leave for work in the morning to avoid sitting in traffic! We’d love to hear about your experiences.

Let us know what you think! Feel free to leave comments or email us at [email protected].

A little bit of OBDII history:  just what is an OBDII port and what does it do?

If your car was built after 1996 and has a gasoline engine, chances are high that it has an OBDII port. But what is its purpose, beside being what devices like Metromile’s Metronome are plugged into?

The OBD, or on-board diagnostics, port began as a way to measure a vehicle’s emissions. California, in particular, wanted a way to combat the growing issue of smog, so in 1966 they began to require emissions testing in all vehicles. This requirement gradually became adopted nationwide in 1968.

In 1988, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) passed a requirement that all vehicles sold in the state include on-board diagnostics. This first port would become known as the OBDI. If your car was made before 1996, you likely have the OBDI. Not sure if your car has an OBDI or OBDII? Here are three ways you can find out.

Flash forward almost a decade to 1996, when all new vehicles nationwide were required to include the OBDII. This next-generation of diagnostics had evolved from emissions testing to monitoring other performance-related aspects of the car, like the engine and chassis.

Here’s how the OBDII works:

• Your car has a Powertrain Control Module (PCM) that constantly monitors the engine. If it detects a problem, like excessive oil consumption, your ‘Check Engine’ or service light will come on and remain on until the issue is resolved.

• A repair technician can connect a scanner to the OBDII port, download your car’s data, confirm a diagnosis and start on the necessary repairs or resolution.

Check out this article to see when the OBDII was added to specific makes and models. For most vehicles, the port is located underneath the steering wheel.

The OBDII helps provide transparency into key operational features of your car so that you can make every effort to keep your vehicle in the best possible shape. Even with the amount of data provided, you should always make sure to stay up-to-date with your car’s maintenance schedule. Don’t delay changing your oil or overlook a Check Engine light that stays on.

If you have Metromile’s Metronome, then you already know how the OBDII can help you identify ways to keep your car at peak performance. Our Metromile app will decode those DTC’s (diagnostic trouble code) and even let you know the severity level. If you have any questions, you can click on the “Ask a Mechanic” button to ask our on-staff mechanic for advice. The app will pre-populate an email with those DTC’s so you won’t have to write them all down. You can also use our Sharing capability to send those DTC’s to your own mechanic directly (via Twitter, Facebook, SMS, and email).

Compatibility with OBDII devices can vary across manufacturers. We wish all car makes and models could magically be compatible with our Metronome! Until specs change, we won’t always be able to provide data for all car brands (check our site for any updates).

Wondering about security? The Metronome device pulls data in real-time from your car and transmits directly to Metromile’s secure data servers. The info is not sent directly to your mobile device. Rather, we make the data available in easy-to-interpret graphs and charts in 2 places:  our app (iOS & Android) and our web-based dashboard (log-in at metromile.com). In effect, data transfer is really only happening one way: from the Metronome device to Metromile secure servers. There is no danger of data going into the vehicle itself.

The OBDII is a great example of the evolution vehicles have gone through over the decades. What began as a way to test emissions has evolved into the portal for mechanics and drivers to obtain data about cars and fix potential problems. For Metromile, the OBDII is how we have unleashed the awesome amount of data to make driving less of a headache and enable drivers to make savvier decisions.

Want to read more? Check out this article’s sources: OBD II Background; Wikipedia; EPA.gov; CNET, “A Brief Intro to OBD-II technology” 

A new consumer report released by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) shows what we long expected— that driving is on the decline.

What’s really interesting is this chart from the Transportation Initiative. It highlights how the U.S. Department of Transportation overestimated growth in road travel for 2012 by almost 11 percent. They estimated that vehicle travel would rise significantly. In reality, it’s decreased. Who’s leading the trend away from driving? Millennials.

According to their report, Millennials, more than previous generations, are driving less and exploring alternatives, like biking and public transportation.They cite several reasons for the decrease, like the rise in gas prices and the economy. For example, tighter pockets from the recession make buying a car a less feasible option. Millennials are also more likely to live in urban areas, where public transportation and walkable routes are more common. Plus, the rise in transportation apps like Google Maps and Muni+ have made navigating public transportation less of a headache by displaying real-time transit departures and arrivals along with suggestions for alternate routes.

When we look back at the “driving boom” of 1946-2004, people hit the road in huge numbers for a lot of reasons that made sense: low gas prices, the growth of suburbs, and the birth of Baby Boomers. Today, increasing numbers of Baby Boomers are retiring, gas prices have increased, and Millennials have developed new preferences for travel, including car sharing.

While the U.S. PIRG suggests that this decrease could be temporary, they also argue that driving will never reach the peak numbers that the U.S Department of Transportation estimated.

So what does this mean for the future of road travel? For one, you could be looking at less traffic on your daily commute (which we all agree would be a welcomed effect). The decrease could also mean more cities invest in public transportation and bike routes. In Metromile’s own backyard, San Francisco recently launched “WalkFirst,” an initiative to improve pedestrian safety. One of the most positive effects of this downward driving trend is a possible reduction in pollution. Less gas, less smog and cleaner air. That’s something we can all get behind.

What do you think about this trend? Does it surprise you that Millennials are driving less? Have you starting driving less? Are there certain kinds of trips where you’ve opted for alternative modes of transportation? Share your thoughts below.

We appreciate when our users share our app – after all, friends help friends become savvier drivers! We’ve got a new way to say thank you to those of you who do. During the month of September, for every 2 friends you refer who sign up for Metromile, we will gift you 1,000lbs of Carbon Credits. 

What is a Carbon Credit exactly? It’s a way to help the environment by funding projects that more directly reduce emissions. For example, one project could involve planting more trees while another could focus on capturing harmful greenhouse gases from getting into the atmosphere. A credit of 1,000lbs is like preventing the emission from 50 gallons of gas!

We all wish we could do more to help the environment, and every effort, no matter how big or small, counts. Biking and using public transportation are great ways that are more readily available to us. Driving is not going away anytime soon, and cars do enable wonderful conveniences. Carbon credits are just one way to help mitigate carbon footprints.

Can’t wait to start sharing and help do some good for our environment? Just log into your online dashboard at metromile.com. You’ll see a green button in the top right area that says “Carbon Credits Referral!”. After clicking, you’ll see 3 options for sharing: email, Facebook, or Twitter.

Your friends must use the links provided in any of the 3 methods, otherwise, we will not be able to connect the referral back to you in order to send you the Carbon Credits. The new user does NOT need to sign up for pay-per-mile insurance; he or she just needs to create a user-account through metromile.com. 

We’ll check every week for your referrals and award on a weekly basis. The email associated with your Metromile account is what we’ll use to send your gift. Maximum number of gifts that can be earned is 4 (i.e. 8 referrals) per person. First 5 people to get 8 referrals within the month of September will receive a Metromile t-shirt and sunglasses!

We look forward to seeing how many pounds of emissions our Metromile community can achieve in one month! Stay tuned for updates by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

To learn more about Carbon Credits:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_credit

How emissions reduction projects work