Is anyone else getting dinged for using hands-free calls while driving? I simply hit a button on my steering wheel to answer a call. And then my Safe Pilot app penalizes me saying, “Your score went down because you need to not answer the phone.” But why do we have hands-free options in our car if we can Bluetooth our phones to avoid using the actual phone?
You know you can just go in the app and change it to not the driver
Emerson said:
You know you can just go in the app and change it to not the driver
Yes, my wife and I did that, and when we plugged our phone in for GPS or music, it said the driver had distractions the entire drive.
@Zhen
lol I do it after the fact
Emerson said:
@Zhen
lol I do it after the fact
We found out in our state they can’t use that info against us, so that’s nice lol.
Emerson said:
@Zhen
lol I do it after the fact
We found out in our state they can’t use that info against us, so that’s nice lol.
But they WILL. And they know you can’t prove it
@Luca
I don’t know, but my score hasn’t gone up and my wife sucks at driving.
Zhen said:
@Luca
I don’t know, but my score hasn’t gone up and my wife sucks at driving.
Does she have either app on her phone?
I’ve often wondered if even the USAA app itself tracks things without your consent.
@Luca
We both had it, and my conspiracy brain thought the same.
Zhen said:
@Luca
We both had it, and my conspiracy brain thought the same.
One could always remove the app, drive, then reinstall it. LOL
In the FAQs, hands free calling is listed as an infraction.
It’s still a distraction from driving.
Products like Safe Pilot are not in the best interest of the consumer. The apps exist to assist the insurer in justifying rate increases.
Oli said:
Products like Safe Pilot are not in the best interest of the consumer. The apps exist to assist the insurer in justifying rate increases.
This.
Oli said:
Products like Safe Pilot are not in the best interest of the consumer. The apps exist to assist the insurer in justifying rate increases.
Do you mean rate increases overall for the company? Because using the app will not increase your rate as an individual.
@Maris
Hu?
Safe Pilot tells me I brake harshly every day on my commute to work where I cross a speed bump. Every day. Until they fix that, those trips are always “not drives”
I have 2 phones, Safe pilot is on one and the other is the one actually connected to my car for calls 
@Yule
How does this work?
You’d have to have service on both phones, right?
@Yule
Same. Unless USAA corrects the app to not ding people for hands free calls, I’m not changing from a 2 phone setup.
I use the app because it is worth it when I am paying $3,600 every 6 months for auto insurance. Granted, it is 4 vehicles and 4 drivers, one of whom is a new driver. Getting the 10% off immediately and up to 30% off is a big help for me.
This is why I won’t sign up.