AutoHabits – GPS Driver Tracking & Behavior Reporting System

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions


How does it work?

AutoHabits is a Driver Behavior Reporting System. It works by collecting real-time data and sending it directly from your driver’s car whenever it is being driven. The AutoHabits’ Device easily plugs into the OBD (On-Board-Computer) port of the car, linking AutoHabits directly to the car’s computer. AutoHabits’ Device has both a built-in GPS sensor, and the capability of sending signals like a cell phone to the AutoHabits’ Datacenter consistently. AutoHabits has powerful analytical engines that process all that data, and translate it into an easy to read, simple DashBoard report that is emailed to you each week. Online tools are always available at AutoHabits if you would like to investigate as far back as 60-days.

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Is there anything to install?

To collect data directly from your driver’s car, AutoHabits uses a device that plugs easily, with one-step, into the OBD (On Board Diagnostic) port of the car. As part of your purchase of AutoHabits, you will receive the AutoHabits’ Device in the mail. When it arrives, you will need to locate the OBD port, which is typically under the dash of the driver’s side (CLICK HERE for details on how to locate the car’s OBD port). The AutoHabits’ Device draws a minimal amount of power directly from the car, so there are no other wires or cables to worry about. Once the device is plugged in, and the car is started, AutoHabits’ systems will recognize the signal and then go to www.autohabits.com login to complete the setup.

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Will it work with any car?

Most cars made after 1996 include an OBD-II (On Board Diagnostic) port. AutoHabits’ Device easily plugs into that port, and should be able to link directly with your car to collect and transmit the data it needs to produce your reports. If you have further questions, check with your local mechanic to confirm your car has an OBD port, or contact us at customercare@AutoHabits.com and we’ll be glad to help you.

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Will it work everywhere?

The AutoHabits’ Device that you receive after purchasing on-line, sends data signals to our datacenter through a system similar to a cell phone. And like today’s cell phones, the technology is pretty remarkable and covers just about everywhere in the U.S. However, disruptions in service can occur if the car travels through weaker cellular coverage areas or is momentarily interrupted by significant obstructions like a parking garage or tunnel. Checks and balances are built into the system to understand if the device experiences long interruptions in service, and these events can be brought to your attention.

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Does it need professional installation?

The AutoHabits’ Device connects directly to your driver’s car computer. Once you locate the OBD (On Board Diagnostic) port in the car, the device easily plugs in with only one-step(CLICK HERE for details on how to locate the car’s OBD port). There are no wires or cables, or any other steps so professional installation is not required.

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Will the AutoHabits’ Device interfere with driving?

The AutoHabits’ Device is a small non-descript plug and and after inserting into the OBD port of your car, it will hardly be noticed and should not interfere with the normal driving of the car. If you have further questions or concerns please contact customercare@AutoHabits.com.

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Can AutoHabits be disabled or turned off by the driver?

The AutoHabits’ Device easily plugs into the OBD port of the driver’s car. And as easy as it is to plug in, it is also that easy to unplug. However, since the AutoHabits’ Device connects directly into the car’s computer, it consistently tracks and sends relevant driving behavior data every time the car is turned on. Checks and balances are built into the system to understand if the device had been “unplugged” and these events can be brought to your attention.

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What if I have multiple drivers for the car?

AutoHabits’ Device is linked directly to the car’s computer, and consistently tracks and sends relevant driver behavior data every time the car it turned on. The AutoHabits’ Dashboard Report that is sent to your email each week is an easy to read, simple summary of what driving behavior occurred in that car for the past week. If you have multiple drivers of the same vehicle, who regularly share the car during the week, the result you will receive is a summary of all the behavior from that car. To isolate out a particular driver’s behavior, the AutoHabits’ online tools are always available to provide the same information for any time period from the past 60-days. You can easily focus on time periods you know when each driver was driving the car. If you have further questions on how to do this, please contact us at customercare@AutoHabits.com.

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Will I get a discount on my Auto Insurance?

The straight answer is maybe (CLICK HERE). Driver monitoring is an emerging and exciting industry that major insurance agencies are watching carefully, some even have begun to test a few technologies of their own. Everyone, including AutoHabits, believes that preventative monitoring of young drivers will have a positive financial impact for parents, and the insurance agencies themselves. And most importantly, it will lead to safer roads and less accidents. Today, many insurance agencies do offer discounts for qualifying anti-theft devices, which often includes GPS units like the AutoHabits Device. These discounts can be in the range of 5% up to 33%, but you will need to discuss your specific policy with your agent. If you would like to learn more about auto-insurance discount tips, we encourage you to visit the National Association of Insurance Commissioners website at www.naic.org .

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Tell me more about the Dashboard “Peer Group” comparisons

One of the many unique benefits of using the AutoHabits Driving Behavior Reporting System, is its capability to compare key indicators of your individual driver’s behavior to those of their relevant peer groups. During the initial set-up process of a new AutoHabits account or additional device, you will have the opportunity to identify the car to be driven by a teenage driver, a senior driver, or other. AutoHabits’ powerful analytical engine consolidates this driving behavior information for all these respective groups, and includes a comparison of your individual drivers results to this “peer group”. By doing this, your weekly AutoHabits’ Dashboard provides a meaningful benchmark to understand the driving behavior of those you care about.

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Tell me more about the “GeoZones.”

One of the many unique benefits of using AutoHabits Driving Reporting System is the ability to define “GeoZones” for where the car should be and when it should be there. For instance, if you would like to assure that the car remains parked at home during the hours of 11:00pm to 5:00am, AutoHabits can do that. During the initial set-up process of a new AutoHabits account or additional AutoHabits’ Device, you will have the opportunity to identify up to nine (9) “GeoZones”. You will be asked to provide an address point per zone and then a radius area of up to 50 miles. For your Primary GeoZone, you will most likely want to define that with a very tight radius, perhaps a home itself. Other GeoZones that may make sense could be a school, work, friend’s house, or relative. For a driver away at College, a large 50 mile GeoZone could be created around the entire city so that a notification would be sent if the car left town. GeoZones can also be used to define areas that you do not want the car to enter.

For each GeoZone, an “enter time” and an “exit time” are defined by you, and will create the appropriate time boundaries allowed. AutoHabits can also be configured to alert you immediately with a text message for any violation. Your weekly Dashboard provides a summary of your GeoZones and any violations reported.

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Tell me more about how Highest Speed is Recorded

Since AutoHabits’ Device is directly linked to the individual car’s computer and data is sent consistently, the speed of the car is accurately reported. Threshold speeds are programmed into the device which allows the system to report moments of excessive speed. The weekly Dashboard you receive will report the highest speed of the car for that week. AutoHabits online tools are always available so that you can review the highest speed from any time period within the previous 60-days.

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Tell me more about the Speed Gap Indicator for Highway/Interstates Roads

The industry slogan “speed kills” is based in fact. Inexperienced drivers are more likely to be in fatal accidents at higher speeds, which is why it is good practice to limit and monitor your young driver on Highways/Interstates. One of the many unique benefits of using AutoHabits Driving Reporting System is its ability to provide awareness of your individual driver’s average driving speed on Highway/Interstate roads compared to their peer groups average driving speed on those types of roads. AutoHabits powerful analytical engines consistently monitor the car’s location by GPS, and identifies when road types are classified as Highway/Interstates. Your car’s speed is then accurately tracked, and averaged for the time on those roads so it can be compared against the peer groups.

While for younger drivers, it is often speedy driving that is the issue, the opposite can occur for a senior driver. Often with age, comes an extra level of caution that shows up in driving behavior as “too slow”. On Highways/Interstates especially, driving significantly slower than the flow of traffic can create hazardous situations for the individual and others. AutoHabits’ goal is to provide you tools to reinforce responsible driving habits for those you care about.

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Tell me more about the Acceleration, Braking, and Overall Smoothness Indicators

The more experience a driver has, generally the smoother the ride. Young drivers tend to rapidly accelerate or brake hard as they are learning to become more comfortable and confident drivers. Again, often the opposite may be true for a more senior driver whose increased caution creates more dramatic acceleration or braking driving behavior.

One of the many unique benefits of using AutoHabits Driving Reporting System is the ability to consistently monitor your individual’s driving behavior and compare it to their peer group. AutoHabits isolates the different components of Acceleration and Braking behavior, and then combines them together for an Overall Smoothness indication. That way, you can reinforce responsible driving habits, and better address areas for improvement.

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Why does AutoHabits provide Daytime and Nighttime break-outs for Acceleration, Braking and Overall Smoothness Indicators?

Driving behavior can be considerably impacted by the time of day.

Variations in Acceleration and Braking, and the Overall Smoothness Indicators for nighttime driving compared to daytime driving may be signals that further intervention is required. AutoHabits’ powerful analytical engines recognize each data submission it receives from the car as either a daytime or nighttime event, and then aggregates it accordingly to provide this information on the weekly Dashboard.

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Tell me more about the EcoDriver Indicator

There is so much heightened awareness today about how each of our day-to-day behavior impacts the world in which we live. Driving a car is no exception, and has a significant impact on environmental issues. One of the many unique benefits of using AutoHabits Driving Reporting System is the ability to monitor and track an EcoDriver Indicator associated from your individual’s driving behavior. Factors such as Overall Smoothness, Speed, Average Miles Per Gallon, Total Miles Driven, and Time Spent Idling are among the inputs included in AutoHabits calculation to give you a sense of the environmental impact your individual’s driving behavior is having.

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Can my driver’s information be viewed by others?

AutoHabits is designed to provide you with meaningful and relevant driving behavior information for those you care about. During the new account or an additional AutoHabits’ Device set-up process, you define which email(s) will receive the weekly Dashboard report. You provide which cell phone numbers will receive immediate notification of extreme driving behavior text messages alerts. You can always adjust these notifications in the account maintenance section at AutoHabits.com. The AutoHabits’ Dashboard reports your driver’s individual behavior compared to a benchmark rankings of their peers as presented in an aggregate, unnamed manner. Your individual driving behavior is not identifiable to anyone that you do not elect. Please read our privacy policy for additional information.

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How accurate is AutoHabits Driving Reporting System?

It is amazing what technology can deliver in today’s world, and AutoHabits is another great example. AutoHabits’ Device consistently tracks and sends data whenever your car is in motion. There is a tremendous amount of data that gets analyzed by our powerful analytical engines. With all that data, the accuracy of the results increases because there are few missed events. Our goal is to provide you with useable and accurate information so that you can reinforce responsible driving behavior, or immediately address areas of concern for those you care about. While there may be an occasional limitation in reporting, AutoHabits focuses on the driving behavior trends for that week to provide you a clear understanding of how those you care about are driving.

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