Nationwide Takes to Road with SmartRide Program

In time for National Youth Traffic Safety Month, Nationwide Insurance has launched SmartRide^SM, a comprehensive teen driver program. The program empowers teens and parents and provides the right tools and resources to help teens become smarter and safer drivers. This is particularly important since automobile crashes are the leading cause of death among American teens.

Developed in association with the National Safety Council, SmartRide^SM is an online learning and coaching program designed to better prepare teen drivers for the road ahead. Participants completing the program could also save up to five percent on their teen’s auto insurance in areas where applicable.

Nationwide SmartRideSM has three main components:

-- Nationwidesmartride.com

This Web site is a free, one-stop resource featuring sections

for both parents and teens with separate content tailored to

each audience. It is available free to anyone regardless of

whether they are a Nationwide customer.

It offers parents extraordinary access to information and

tools that will help them as they guide their children to

become smart drivers. It provides teens with practical

techniques and driving tips to help them develop and practice

good driving habits, particularly as they relate to the top

causes of teen crashes.

-- SmartRideSM Learning Sessions & Tests

Nationwide customers can access additional content through

SmartRideSM Learning Sessions & Tests. The sessions are

interactive, narrated tutorials that address key driving tips

and behaviors, focusing specifically on the top causes of teen

crashes and violations.

With SmartRideSM Learning Sessions & Tests, teens learn

driving tips such as how to be more aware of their

surroundings while driving, driving at night and in bad

weather, and how to deal with distractions such as friends,

phones and music. The knowledge acquired in these sessions is

then evaluated through six online certification tests.

SmartRideSM also asks parents to participate in 75 hours of

in-car driving with their teen to help reinforce the valuable

lessons learned online. When the tests and in-car driving

hours have been completed, the teen will be “SmartRideSM

certified.”

-- SmartRideSM Discount

To recognize the efforts of teens and parents, Nationwide will

offer a discount that will apply to the teen's premium once

they have been SmartRideSM certified.

The discount saves young drivers up to five percent and is

applicable up through age 24. The SmartRideSM discount is

already available in Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Washington

D.C., Delaware and Maryland.

The importance of smart driving knowledge is significant. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, automobile crashes are the leading cause of death among American teens.

For more information about teen driving and the SmartRide^SM program, visit www.nationwidesmartride.com.