From the Editor.

Author/s:
Issue: August, 2001

Once in a while, a great idea comes along that, like many great ideas, seems profoundly simple, and thus easy to overlook. But there should be no overlooking the simple good sense of something called the I Promise Program, which promises not only to save the lives of countless teenaged drivers--indeed, drivers and pedestrians of all ages--but could also save an estimated $3.2 billion in insurance claims.

The program, which is run from Dundas, Ontario, in Canada, is the brainchild of Gary Direnfeld, the former executive director of Toronto's Centre for Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation. Direnfeld explains that the idea came to him after nearly being run off the road by a recklessly driving teen. He discovered that some of the most successful injury prevention programs involved a combination of social contract and vehicle monitoring, such as the familiar "How's My Driving?" stickers on commercial trucks. These invite fellow drivers to call a toll-free number and report unsafe truckers. One study of such programs, by Hanover Insurance Co., showed a 22 percent drop in accidents, and a 53 percent reduction in lost dollars.

Applying the same principle, Direnfeld devised the "I Promise" approach, by which teens and parents would agree on a pledge of safe driving, and a rear-window car decal with a "How's My Driving?" message and a toll-free number to call--a great deterrent to recklessness, in and of itself. Member insurance companies would notify teen drivers of the program at the best possible time--when they issue a teen's very first driver coverage--and provide information about the perils of such driver distractions as cell phones, loud music, and too many passengers. So far, Dominion of Canada Insurance Co. is the first to commit to the I Promise Program, but Direnfeld's hope is that insurers across North America will sign on. That's an absolute no-brainer, and every auto insurer in the land should adopt it. You can contact I Promise at www.ipromiseprogram.com, or Direnfeld at garyl23@symptico.ca. I urge you to do it now--and save lives in a profoundly simple way.

Editor-in-Chief Risk & Insurance mdamsker@lrp.com

Gary Direnfeld, Executive Director
I Promise Program
20 Suter Crescent,
Dundas, Ontario, Canada
L9H 6R5
(905) 628-4847 gary123@sympatico.ca www.ipromiseprogram.com