One of the dumber things I’ve ever done financially is buy an old two-seat convertible on eBay. Who would have guessed that you just don’t get a chance to drive that thing much in Seattle? But next July, when the sun comes out again, I’ll be very happy to have it.

In the meantime, I have this nasty monthly insurance bill. Really, $60 per month to have the car sit idle in my garage? It’s throwing good money after bad. I should call my agent and turn the insurance off. But what if there’s a sun-break this month or our other car is in the shop? Then I’ll need it.  

From the insurance company’s perspective, they don’t want me calling to activate/deactivate insurance multiple times per year (though they love my current zero-miles-per-winter full-pay status). The subsequent labor and fulfillment cost would wipe out much, if not all, the profitability on my account.

So, I’m the perfect candidate for pay-as-you-go insurance, and I’m happy to see it launch in Oregon, thanks to MetroMile, a VC-backed Bay Area startup (note 1). Hopefully, it will make it’s way north to Seattle very soon.
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How it works
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MetroMile charges a smaller fixed monthly fee, then adds a variable charge based on the number of miles driven (with a cap at 150 miles in a day).

To calculate the mileage fee users plug a small device called a Metronome into their on-board diagnostic port (note 2). It measures miles traveled and tracks GPS location to create a rich history of your touring (see inset & screenshot 1, note 3).

Oregon residents can get a lightening-fast quote (screenshots 2 to 5) and complete the app online (screenshot 6). The quote on my convertible came was $29/mo plus 2.3 cents per mile (screenshot 4). This would be an amazing deal for me, cutting my insurance costs by 50% annually (note 4). I would save money every month I drove less than 1,300 miles. 

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Opportunity for financial institutions 
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It’s going to take a massive education process before this new type of insurance becomes popular (assuming state regulators allow it). Show customers that you are innovative and can deliver superior value by introducing them to a financial product that could save them $20 per month for the rest of their lives. And one that delivers a rich history of their car travel (which can eventually be plugged into the bank’s PFM).

You could even package it with other bank products (checking, savings, car loans, etc) to continue to remind customers that you helped save them big time. Even more interesting, would be bundling the insurance with mileage-based auto financing to provide an even bigger incentive to save money by driving fewer miles. 

Right now, in the United States, only Oregon FIs could participate (note 5). But as the product spreads nationwide across multiple providers, it could make a nice, profitable product addition to your web and mobile offerings.  

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1. MetroMile dashboard showing GPS data compiled from tracking device (5 Dec 2012)

2. MetroMile homepage features 2-minute quote (5 Dec 2012)
Note: Unlike virtually all insurance quote sites, no contact info is required to find the actual price. And you for one car and one driver, you can fill out the form in as little as 60 seconds, my actual time the third time I tried it.

3. Step 1: Enter primary driver info

4. Step 2: Enter vehicle info

5. Step 3: The final price is delivered in the the third-pane of the application

6. Finalize online app with contact info

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Notes:
1. Hat tip to Pando Daily.
2. The port is available on all cars built since 1996.
3. The device could also be used to measure average speed, but GPS data collection is optional and is not currently used by the company.  
4. I was comparing my current Seattle price to a Portland quote, so that could be a portion of the difference.
5. We don’t know if MetroMile is will pay for referrals at this time.
6. For more on banks offering insurance, see our full report here (Dec 2011, subscription)