The State Farm Drive Safe and Save program offers discounts on car insurance
to drivers who practice safe driving habits. State Farm uses telematics data via a special beacon installed on your windshield—or through OnStar, if you use that service—to monitor your driving habits. The company uses this data to determine your discount at each renewal period.
Not all insurers offer this kind of program, which makes it all the more important to shop around and learn about your options.
With the insurance comparison shopping app Jerry
, you can easily and quickly sort through competitive quotes from more than 40 of the country’s top insurers. That means you’ll save money with or without a discount program! Best of all, signing up takes just 45 seconds! Here’s what you should know about State Farm Drive Safe and Save.
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What is State Farm Drive Safe and Save?
This program is State Farm’s way of incentivizing its clients to drive safely. If you do, you’ll reap the rewards of paying lower premiums on your car insurance.
The Drive Safe and Save program uses telematic data to monitor your driving habits. The company then analyzes the data and uses it to determine how much you can save on your insurance rate at your next renewal.
Although discount amounts vary between states, drivers can save, on average, 30–50% on their insurance by enrolling in the program.
How does Drive Safe and Save work?
If you qualify, State Farm’s Drive Safe and Save program adds a 5% discount to your policy upon sign-up. Future discounts will depend on you and your driving habits.
As State Farm monitors your habits, discounts will accrue each month and be added to your policy at each renewal period or every six months. And if you have a bad month, it won’t put a dent in any discounts previously accrued.
Also, even if you’re still ironing out some "bad" driving habits, your policy won’t be surcharged. Translation: your rates won’t rise due to some less-than-ideal habits.
How to set up State Farm’s Drive Safe and Save program
Whip out that handy-dandy smartphone and text SAVE to 78836 for a download link to either the App Store or the Google Play store. You’ll need a compatible smartphone to download the app to your phone (apologies to any remaining Blackberry users).
Log in to statefarm.com with your user ID and password and enroll in the program. State Farm will send you a Bluetooth beacon in the mail. When it arrives, follow the instructions and attach the beacon to your windshield.
The corresponding app is easy use.
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Signing up with OnStar
If you’re already an OnStar customer, it will share your telematic data with State Farm once you enroll in the Drive Safe and Save program.
Just call State Farm at 888-559-1922, let the agent know you’d like to use your OnStar account to sign up for the Drive Safe and Save program, and they’ll take care of the rest.
What does State Farm Drive Safe and Save monitor?
State Farm determines your discounts by monitoring a slew of data, including mileage and the following driving habits:
Acceleration
Speeding up too quickly can cause you to lose control of your car, making you more vulnerable to be involved in an accident.
Braking
Braking is key to, well, driving. You always want to keep a healthy distance between your car and the one in front of you.
State Farm monitors how quickly you brake and will reward braking that is gradual and slow, as opposed to slamming on the brakes.
Cornering
How you corner says a lot about your driving. State Farm’s beacon monitors how quickly you take corners, and thus determines how aggressive a driver you are.
Sharp turns are often an indicator of trying to avoid a quickly approaching vehicle—behavior that won’t help you in your quest for discounts.
Speed
If you have a habit of speeding by more than 8 miles per hour, the beacon will notice. Obey the speed limit and your discounts will grow.
Phone use
State Farm’s technology can track whether you use your phone, through movement and screen use, when you drive. Besides this being incredibly unsafe, this will hamper your ability to accrue discounts.
So don’t touch the phone while driving.
Time of day
If possible, avoid driving in rush hour or late-night traffic. Driving at times of lighter traffic will increase your chances of building your discount.
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Your grade from State Farm
As State Farm collects all the above data and crunches the numbers each month, they will give your driving a grade. At renewal time, this grade will be used to determine your discount—anywhere from 5–50% —on your insurance rate for the coming renewal period.
Key Takeaway State Farm weighs numerous factors when determining your discount, including acceleration, cornering, braking, speed, phone use, and the time of day you drive.
Who should use State Farm Drive Safe and Save?
If you’ve already built safe driving habits, you should definitely sign up for the program. You’ll be rewarded with discounts on your premiums, and who wouldn’t want that?
Even if your driving habits are less than stellar, signing up is a good thing to do if you qualify. State Farm’s program offers a powerful cash incentive for drivers to clean up their driving and ensure both their own and other drivers’ safety on the road.
State Farm’s program is also a great idea for young drivers, who pay much higher premiums on average than do older drivers. So long as their driving is safe, young drivers will save a bundle with discounts accruing on their policy each month.
In case you were wondering, traffic stops and tickets will not affect your ability to accrue discounts in the Drive Safe and Save program.
One other thing to know—if you’re already enrolled in the low-mileage discount program (under 7,500 miles), the Drive Safe and Save program will notify you if you exceed this threshold. If you do go over, your rates may go up.
Key Takeaway Almost everyone can benefit from the Drive Safe and Save program, including young drivers who typically pay sky-high premiums.
FAQs
So even if I have an "off" month, I won’t lose my discount?
Correct, the discounts you’ve already accrued won’t be withdrawn. Do note, though, that if you have an off month or two, you won’t accrue discounts to your policy like you did when your driving was exemplary. All the more reason to focus on driving safely!
Does the state I live in matter in determining how much of a discount I’ll get?
Yes, where you live will affect the size of the discount you’ll be awarded. Your State Farm agent will inform you of the discount range you can expect in your state.
Saved $725 annually
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