The Arbella Insurance Group, in partnership with Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT), have launched of Wheel Focuse, a telematics-based solution  to change driver behavior through real-time feedback, personalized data and insights, and gamification.

Participants in similar CMT programs have seen driving habits improve within 30 days of implementation, reducing phone distraction by 35 percent, hard braking by 20 percent and at-risk speeding by 20 percent.

Wheel Focused™ utilizes CMT’s award-winning platform, DriveWell, a complete telematics and behavioral analytics solution, that includes battery-efficient drive detection, an industry-leading data collection and processing engine and big data analytics. The app provides feedback to drivers on five metrics: rapid acceleration, hard braking, sharp turns, speeding and phone distraction. Wheel Focused™ logs trips while in the background of a phone, providing the driver with feedback after the trip is completed, as well as helpful tips to improve safety.

According to CMT, distracted driving is a leading factor of trips that result in an accident, as drivers who use a smartphone behind the wheel are 3.4 times more likely to be involved in a crash. Traffic fatalities continue to increase nationwide, spiking six percent since 2016, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NTHSA). Massachusetts reported a 13 percent increase with 389 deaths in 2016; more than double the national rate.

Wheel Focused™ is available to download for free in the Apple and Android stores. The program is open to all residents of Massachusetts and Connecticut regardless of who their insurer is and where they purchase insurance.

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