Progressive Corp., an auto insurance company, has accused Liberty Mutual, another insurance company, of infringing on patents it holds for automobile onboard monitoring systems. Such systems capture data regarding a driver’s driving habits.

In 1999, Progressive began offering an in-car monitoring system. The voluntary system, named MyRate, monitors such items as how fast a driver travels, times of travel, and average daily mileage.  The company uses this information to determine if the driver qualifies for discounts on auto insurance.

Progressive filed suit in US District Court, Northern District of Ohio on June 18.  The suit accuses two programs utilized by Liberty Mutual – OnBoard Advisor Insurance Advisor and Rewind – of infringing on its patents for in-car monitoring issued in 2000.

Liberty Mutual’s OnBoard Advisor program tracks the driving habits of commercial drivers to determine if they qualify for discounts. The Rewind Program monitors driving habits of those with previous traffic violations based on improved driving habits.

Liberty Mutual has not commented on the pending litigation.

SOURCE: Shaheen Samavati, “Progressive files suit against Liberty Mutual,” Cleveland.com, June 22, 2010 (http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/06/progressive_files_suit_against.html).