More than Smart Wheels Car Insurance

Rather than slowing down for each bump and speeding back up, keep a constant speed (say, 20mph) and you'll notice your "smoothness" score not be as poor. From what I understand, "smoothness" relates to braking and accelerating, not how bumpy a road is.

Smoothness is affected by speed bumps , but if u slow right down to go over the speed bumps then ur score shouldn’t be affected, my daughter went over a pot hole and that affected her smoothness score. Nothing she could do as she didn’t see the pot hole.

Rather than slowing down for each bump and speeding back up, keep a constant speed (say, 20mph) and you'll notice your "smoothness" score not be as poor. From what I understand, "smoothness" relates to braking and accelerating, not how bumpy a road is.

Unfortunately not that type of speed bump. These are quite raised so go over them at 20mph and you're very likely to damage your suspension. Had no choice other than to slow right down.

The ones that are generally longer and less raised we have just around the corner and yes you can go over them at 20mph without any problem but there are lots of different types of speed bumps.

Okay.. so slow down to the appropriate speed and maintain it, the speed is irrelevant, only that you maintain whatever speed rather than slowing and accelerating each time.

Not only is this what the insurance company wants, it's much more fuel efficient, and economical for the environment.

Out of curiosity, can you show me the type of speed bump you're referring to, as those placed in 30mph zones should be safe to drive over at 20mph. Unless this is a car park with 5mph limits, I see no reason why 20mph isnt the appropriate speed.

It's worth noting that she now has a record for cancelled insurance, so when answering the question "have you ever had an insurance policy cancelled or voided by an insurer", she must declare yes.

In the insurer's defense, the reason they've given you a low premium is because you agree to have a box fitted - they give leniency in that they start the policy before the fitting date, which means you're permitted to drive without the box; as this is a significantly higher risk, they give you a deadline to fit the box. The fees cover the cost of cancellation, and the fitters wasted time, as well as the risk the insurer has taken.

I wouldn't bother trying to claw back the fees, as it'll have been quite clear in the terms and conditions that your daughter agreed to; it is a legally binding contract, after all. The problem your daughter now has is the cancellation on her record - you need to get this removed, initially by asking very very nicely. If the insurer refuses, get a deadlock letter and take it to FOS and see if they can make the insurer budge. Cite the impact a cancellation would have on her future premiums for life.

In future, make sure your daughter is available for the whole day whenever she makes appointments for things like this, as timescales can and do vary.



Unfortunately, you knew the score when you took out the policy. If you didn't want to be held to a curfew, you shouldn't have taken out a policy that restricted the times you can drive.

Now you're just talking rubbish to save face. Speed is not irrelevant as you have to keep up with traffic. If you go over a bump at 5mph then if you continue to drive at 5 mph you could be charged for careless driving. Driving at that low a speed is definitely not more efficient or environmentally friendly.

A lot of the residential roads locally have had the speed limits dropped to 20mph and as previously pointed out the type of bump on these roads means you have to go over them very slowly. They cover the whole width of the road and are similar to this:

This must be a private road, and therefore is not bound by the rules councils adhere to, in which case, you do have an issue.

With the greatest of respect, in the vast majority of cases regarding speed bumps on the roads, posters are describing speed cushions on public roads, not these awful 5mph bumps on private roads.

You did make it seem like this was a public road.

Those are the ones that our council have deemed fit to install on public roads. Go over them too fast and you can do some serious damage to your car.

Again I will reiterate that you are penalised for driving over these. Penalised for driving after 23:00 and penalised for journeys of over an hour. I wouldn't recommend Smart Wheels to anyone.

These things might have something to do with having little to no gps signal in my area

I'm with Smart Wheels and have had 0 problems so far. I've been with them for 6 months.

People moaning about the "ratings" the black box gives you are stupid. They literally mean nothing and don't affect how much you pay/your policy, unless you're going at a ridiculous speed.

I regularly drive at gone midnight and I still maintain a score of 7/8 out of 10.

****** edit: also I am seriously awful at driving so that's why I don't think the telematics box is that strict at all

I'm with Smart Wheels and have had 0 problems so far. I've been with them for 6 months.

People moaning about the "ratings" the black box gives you are stupid. They literally mean nothing and don't affect how much you pay/your policy, unless you're going at a ridiculous speed.

I regularly drive at gone midnight and I still maintain a score of 7/8 out of 10.

****** edit: also I am seriously awful at driving so that's why I don't think the telematics box is that strict at all

Where do you live? The moon?

That would be nice, but no, just a small village. I said it might be because of that. Only get that impression as when it comes to setting up a satnav, it can’t find any gps satellites until we are 3 miles away from the village. It’s the only explanation that we can think of, unless More Than satellites are completely ****ed and have mixed my car up with one that is sat at the bottom of the Atlantic😂😂

Only if you don't drive through a section of speed bumps correctly. As I've already said, "smoothness" is a measure of acceleration and braking, as well as cornering. It is not affected by how bumpy a road is.

Here we go , these are taken from and insurance website who deal with black boxes , it clearly states that smoothness is acceleration, braking, cornering and also up and down movement . So yes potholes and speed bumps can affect your smoothness score

Given this is a thread pertaining to More Than, perhaps their advice would be more in line with the debate at hand: https://www.morethan.com/customer-help/car-insurance/more-thn-smrt-wheels/how-does-black-box-measure-my-driving-style/

"We assess your acceleration, braking or deceleration, and cornering."

Potholes and speed bumps simply do not affect your scores providing you navigate them correctly - period.