Usage-based insurance (UBI) for auto is often presented as a “one size fits all” solution to insurers’ business problems. Tiny telematics devices that can be installed in policyholders’ vehicles indeed have great potential for areas such as pricing, loss control and customer service.

But the idea that a single approach to UBI can solve any problem great or small ignores a simple reality: All insurers are not the same.

Every business faces a unique set of issues, and designing a UBI program with the right fit involves careful specification of business objectives.