App in the driving seat

South African drivers have always had a bad rap but a new smartphone app could change that.

Discovery Insure has released as a free download an application that monitors driving behaviour then tries to change it by offering incentives for improvement, such as a trip to watch the Monaco Grand Prix.

The intention is to improve the nation's driving habits and reduce the annual road death toll, which stands at around 13000.

The app was launched on June 1 as part of the Discovery Insure Driver Challenge.

So far 18000 users have signed up across the country.

Discovery Insure head of driver behaviour Marty Epstein said the app was already revealing a great deal about the country's motorists.

"We are finding that women are better drivers, and the best drivers are in Western Cape," said Epstein.

He said that, according to the data, the worst drivers are in KwaZulu-Natal .

The app works by using the smartphone's GPS, accelerometer and gyroscope. After a trip has been completed the data are uploaded for analysis.

Driving behaviour - including harsh braking, hard cornering and speeding - is noted. The driver is then given a rating of between one star (bad) and five stars (excellent).

The driver is sent driving tips. So far, about 40% of drivers are getting five stars a trip.

There is a leaderboard function that ranks a driver's score against that of his friends and other users of the app.

"We are using the competitive nature of people to change their behaviour," said Epstein.

The challenge runs until August31.

There are weekly draws for a share of R1-million in petrol vouchers and the grand prize is a trip for four to the Monaco Grand Prix.

Competitors can also gain points by inviting friends to join.

The app is available to everyone as a free download from App Store or Google Play Store.