GPS tracker tag for stolen bike

[3bodotbike]

9 minutes ago, dave303e said:

100%. Economically it does make sense. If a tracker is able to recover 1/5 vehicles. That 1/5 will cover the cost of the discount in insurance for the 4 not recovered. I will be happy as a customer, on my car it is like R500 off the insurance spending R99 a month on tracker so a net saving of R400/month. Tracking company is happy as they get a bunch of business. Win Win Win. Even Sars is happy as money is spent all round.

My concern with a bicycle is that there is no electricity generation so the owner is in charge of keeping that tracker battery going. When it gets stolen and they can prove your battery is dead then insurance is not going to pay out. So that battery better last long and it better be easy to charge.

100% - battery is a crucial piece of the puzzle. The device offers 15 hours of battery time in life track - if the asset cannot be recovered within 15 hours, chances of it ever being recovered are slim. Standby time is 10 days. Easy to charge while mounted to the bicycle and with battery notifications sent to you via WhatsApp the consumer is always aware of the battery life. The financial incentive of having a lower premium/ excess when the device is charged should motivate most of us to keep it charged.

[Blahblah]

I assume even if instant-, or delayed-retrieval is not possible, insurance should be paid out asap....an insurer can thus say, show me the retrieval-effort in data, and if clean, we pay? 

 

[3bodotbike]

4 minutes ago, Blahblah said:

I assume even if instant-, or delayed-retrieval is not possible, insurance should be paid out asap....an insurer can thus say, show me the retrieval-effort in data, and if clean, we pay? 

 

With a solid audit trail of events we can show that the device was charged, where it was when reported lost and where it lost connection.

[PaulSmith]

On 5/11/2023 at 12:53 PM, 3bodotbike said:

Howzit hubbers.

I want to weigh in on this topic...

We have developed an on-demand bicycle tracker that communicates with you via WhatsApp. We are in various talks with different strategic partners to offer value adds (insurance, asset recovery, etc). In short, what our product does is alert you when your bicycle moves. You then have to respond to the Whatsapp message if you are aware of the movement or not. If you respond no - the device kicks to on-demand tracking and you can request the location of the bicycle with very accurate coordinates. At present, the device offers 10 days of standby time (ie when your bike is standing at home and not moving) and up to 15 hours of life tracking time.

We are in the final user testing phase and hope to hit the market before the summer of 2023. Is anyone keen on joining the test pool? Ideally, you would be Stellenbosch based.

 

Very interested!

[Blahblah]

metoo

[ChrisF]

On 5/12/2023 at 10:04 AM, 3bodotbike said:

You make a very good point, Dave. Will you consider a tracker if it reduces your insurance premium and/or excess?

 

NO !!!

 

I have some very BAD memories of being forced by an insurer to use a tracker on a motorcycle.

 

All sounds good up front .... discounted premium, yada yada ....

 

 

Until you get to the fine print ....

 

 

The insurer expects the OWNER to have the unit tested "regularly", AND to have PROOF that the unit functioned correctly.  Failing which theft cover is voided ....

 

 

 

Once the club members realised this, we started testing the units ...... Ooooo wait, the supplier was not set up to test the units ..... many emails and fights later they caved to the insurance and allowed us to have the units tested.

 

 

YES .... most were broken, and sending out no signal.  These were supposedly high quality units, and promoted as such to BMW.

 

I was onto my THIRD replacement unit by the time I sold my bike.  By that time even the insurer stopped insisting on these units as it clearly did not live up to the "sales pitch".

 

 

 

 

The fine print and resulting schlep made these a royal pain in the posterior ......  I have no desire for a repeat of this.

[ChrisF]

22 hours ago, 3bodotbike said:

With a solid audit trail of events we can show that the device was charged, where it was when reported lost and where it lost connection.

 

And if not charged what will the insurance say .... 

 

PS - rhetorical question.

 

 

In goeie Afrikaans, dis nou n lat pluk vir jou eie gat.

[3bodotbike]

20 hours ago, ChrisF said:

 

And if not charged what will the insurance say .... 

 

PS - rhetorical question.

 

 

In goeie Afrikaans, dis nou n lat pluk vir jou eie gat.

Chris, ek is jammer dat jy so slegte uitstappie met die motorfiets tracker gehad het. I get that - when you spend money on a product you expect it to work.

[Blahblah]

23 hours ago, ChrisF said:

imagine 3bodotbike' s product works, and works differently....I am personally quite nuuskierig to know who the insurer was?

The fine print and resulting schlep made these a royal pain in the posterior ......  I have no desire for a repeat of this.

 

[ChrisF]

4 hours ago, Blahblah said:

 

 

That was a deal between BMW's insurance and a tracker company.

 

Seemed good, until the fine print became clear ... and the units failed one after the other, not just mine, most riders in the club had the same issue.

 

 

 

I will have a CLOSE look at the fine print before ever taking a tracker as part of an inaurance deal.

 

 

 

1. This unit has a battery charge of 15 hours ...

2.  MOST thefts are from home.

3. Must you charge this battery DAILY ??

 

 

The concept of a tracker is good.  But dont sell me something that needs constant charging, AND that gathers data the insurer can use to repudiate a claim ....

[robbybzgo]

5 hours ago, ChrisF said:

 

3. Must you charge this battery DAILY ??

But dont sell me something that needs constant charging,

As previously stated:

At present, the device offers 10 days of standby time (ie when your bike is standing at home and not moving) and up to 15 hours of live tracking time.

[Spookie]

2 hours ago, robbybzgo said:

As previously stated:

At present, the device offers 10 days of standby time (ie when your bike is standing at home and not moving) and up to 15 hours of live tracking time.

I’m sure @ChrisF read/understood the times specified. But if you do longish rides on a daily basis, it will require you to recharge every couple of days at least, or daily if you want to minimize the risk. And if you forget to recharge, and head out, or battery deteriorates over time and so runs out while you’re on a ride and then something happens, it’s just an increased burden on you instead of insurance company. Especially with stage 6-7 loadshedding. So I can see why there might be some hesitation (especially given past experience…)
 

Also as previously mentioned, it isn’t planned to be “simple” to take on/off due to theft/removal risk - I, for example, don’t have a plug point at the spot where I store my bike, which also adds to the complications.

Not saying it isn’t a great option for some people, and definitely on the right track, but with such short battery life, for me personally, it wouldn’t be high on my list. especially if it means the insurance company can void a claim if i didn’t have it fully charged. 

 

 

[robbybzgo]

The other positive point offered by the person developing this tracker (not me) is where you get WhatsApp messages to indicate what your battery level is. This would come in handy as a reminder to charge...

I guess under most circumstances you'd need to charge two to three times a month. Sounds doable...

[babse]

What does the divice weigh? 

 

Asking for a friend 🫢

[3bodotbike]

27 minutes ago, babse said:

What does the divice weigh? 

 

Asking for a friend 🫢

The device weighs 77gram. Should not make a big difference to the bike weight.

[Blahblah]

Ito insurance deals, would be best if the insurer offers benefits, rather than punishments....such as a discount on excess, when claiming.... I'm happy to charge a few devices each day, anyway use a powerbank for my cycling devices, negating thinking Esks-kom....