Insurance Claims and GPS: What’s the Connection?

No one wants to file an insurance claim, but when something goes wrong and you need to tap into your coverage, it's frustrating to deal with time-consuming processes and investigations. You might not have much control over how your insurance provider handles your claim, but if you prepare now, you can take some proactive steps to ensure the claim is paid in your favor. Understanding the relationship between insurance claims and GPS is one of the best things you can do to help. 

How Do Insurance Claims and GPS Units Work Together? 

For insurance companies to remain profitable, they try to deny as many claims and pay out as little as possible. Of course, as a policyholder, that's the opposite of what you want to hear. Still, with the nature of insurance, it's not enough to choose a reputable company and pay for enough coverage. You also need to take extra steps to help the process along should you ever file a claim.

Around 2012, insurance companies started using GPS devices to help them set car insurance premiums and investigate claims. Now, over a decade later, GPS devices are used for all types of insurance policies. While they remain a mainstay in the automotive industry, insurance claims and GPS also work together to help protect farm equipment, ATVs, valuable personal property, and other assets.

Here's a look at some of the ways insurance claims and GPS relate:

• Car & Truck: Many consumer insurance companies offer plug-in units or interfaces with built-in GPS units to track braking, acceleration, and location. Some devices can also detect phone usage and other unsafe behaviors. Depending on your policy, using a GPS unit might reduce your premiums. When you file a claim, the company will also review the data to verify who's at fault and understand what caused the accident (e.g., speeding). 
• Fleet Tracking: Commercial truck fleets can remain protected with the help of a GPS unit in every vehicle. Insurance companies can utilize this GPS data to reduce premiums, but they can also review the data after a theft or accident to process the claim faster. 
• Specialty Equipment: Farm equipment, construction equipment, and even boats can benefit from a GPS tracking device. Insurance companies may offer a discount if you have a GPS unit installed in your specialty equipment, as it makes recovering stolen equipment that much more likely. The GPS units can also track usage, which can impact premiums. 
• Valuable Personal Property: When it comes to insuring your valuable personal property — be it fine jewelry, high-end computers, or family heirlooms — using a GPS tracker makes it more likely that you can recover it in case of loss or theft, which is why insurance companies love when policyholders use them. 

Now you know some of the ways insurance companies can use GPS data to process your claim. Your next question might be: Why should they? 

Why Do Insurance Companies Use GPS Devices? 

Insurance companies aim to pay out as little as possible. As a result, they invest millions every year to ensure that they only pay out on complete, accurate, and honest claims. However, they can never be sure that a policyholder has all the details perfectly straight. For this reason, insurance companies like to use technology like GPS devices to get objective facts when a claim is filed. 

While the data from a GPS unit won't always be favorable for an insurance company — like if it proves you're not at fault in an expensive accident — what they really want is to reduce risk by improving claim data and investigation accuracy, and GPS units help them do just that.

Benefits of Having GPS Devices When Filing a Claim

While insurance claims and GPS units work well together, even if your GPS isn't tied in to your insurance company, you can still benefit if you need to file a claim. Here are some of the benefits you could make use of if you invest in the right GPS device:

• Loss Verification: If you lose an insured asset, you can hand the GPS data over to the police and insurance company. The police can use the data to potentially recover your asset, while the insurance company can use the data to verify that your asset was truly lost, ruling out the potential for insurance fraud.
• Theft Recovery: Similarly to the above, if an insured asset is stolen, the police can use the data to help recover it by revealing its last known location. Usage data can also confirm that the asset was in your possession until you reported it stolen.
• Policy Requirements: If your insurance company attempts to deny a claim because of a minor detail, you can use your GPS data to prove important factors, like where the asset was being stored, which is important for adhering to your policy's requirements. 
• Premium Reduction: If you choose to work with an insurance company that will interface with your GPS, you could reduce your premiums over time by using your GPS device to show your usage patterns. If it's a vehicle, your GPS unit can confirm that your drivers behave safely and even help prevent unauthorized usage. 

As you can see, the benefits of insurance claims and GPS units are plentiful. So, how do you choose the right device for your needs? 

Why Choose LAS Devices? 

LandAirSea (LAS) is a leading provider of reliable, durable GPS units that can track assets of all sizes, near and far. No matter what asset you want to protect, our range of devices can conform to your needs — waterproof, weatherproof, discrete, and dependable. Check out our featured trackers to learn more. 

If you have questions about how LandAirSea's devices can support insurance claims and investigations, we'd be happy to walk you through the process and introduce you to some of our favorite devices. Just reach out to ian.conley@landairsea.com to learn more.