Update: Facebook stamps out Admiral's plan to analyse user data to adjust insurance quotes
Admiral Insurance garnered headlines on Wednesday 2 November when it said that it would leverage Facebook user data to adjust user quotes.
The opt-in firstcarquote initiative was geared toward first-time car owners and was to analyse traits such as writing in proper English, making use of lists and agreeing to meet friends at specific times rather than vague periods, to improve quotes. On the other hand, users with a tendency to pepper Facebook posts with disjointed grammar peppered with exclamation marks and frequent use of ‘always’ or ‘never’ rather than ‘maybe’ would be penalized.
At the time, Admiral’s Dan Mines commented: “It is incredibly transparent. If you don’t want to use it in a quote then you don’t have to. We are doing our best to build a product that allows young people to identify themselves as safe drivers.”
However, a Facebook spokesperson denied that Admiral would have access to this sort of information, it said: "Protecting the privacy of the people on Facebook is of utmost importance to us. We have clear guidelines that prevent information being obtained from Facebook from being used to make decisions about eligibility.
"We have made sure anyone using this app is protected by our guidelines and that no Facebook user data is used to assess their eligibility. Facebook accounts will only be used for login and verification purposes.
"Our understanding is that Admiral will then ask users who sign up to answer questions which will be used to assess their eligibility.”
Hours later, the Guardian reported that Admiral pulled the scheme after Facebook blocked it. Firstcarquote was pulled two hours before its launch, with Facebook keen to guard against user data abuse.
Admiral as a result said it would launch the feature with reduced functionality. It comes after the insurer updated its image with a TV campaign showcasing its first-ever female Admiral mascot.
All eyes will now be on the likes of AXA, Aviva & Churchill to see if they now follow suit.