Insurer asr introduces app that blocks smartphone while driving

On Wednesday, the insurance company asr will introduce an application for Android that blocks incoming notifications if a motorist drives faster than 15 kilometers per hour. Asr emphasizes that the app is completely separate from insurance and is only intended to contribute to safe traffic.

The Safe Driving app doesn’t block everything: hands-free calling and navigation remain available. According to a post on the insurance company’s site, no data is stored, the user is not tracked, and the app is not linked to insurance premium or coverage. Because the app is separate from the company, users do not have to be customers.

According to asr, we use the smartphone ‘a lot behind the wheel’. Many users cannot resist the notifications and therefore drivers use various social media and internet while driving. Asr cites a study by the Road Safety Research Foundation from 2013 which allegedly showed that five to 25 percent of all traffic accidents are caused by distraction. Three percent of fatal accidents are said to be caused by ‘texting and behind the wheel’.

Despite the fact that the app switches off the various functions of the phone at speeds above fifteen kilometers per hour, there is also a passenger mode, so that use of all applications during a journey in public transport or as a passenger remains possible. The app can be downloaded from the Play Store.