Telematics & Tech for Recovery Programs

Distracted driving is a huge risk factor for any recovery program with cars. How can you help prevent it? One answer might be telematics: small GPS and data tracking units installed in vehicles.

Daryl Henry, Managing Partner at Bitner Henry, and Chris Graham, a specialist in risk management for recovery centers and sober living homes, recently sat down to discuss the practice.

What is the Point of Telematics?

Many operators view telematics as a way to “catch” people doing something wrong. While managing driver behavior is a part of it, the technology actually serves as a window into the health of your entire operation.

“Using technology to your advantage in these operations, it’s not just managing behavior,” says Daryl Henry. “It’s about knowing what’s happening with your cars, where they’re going, and what’s happening to them. You can unpack a whole lot of different things going on in your operation to make what you’re doing safer.”

What Can Telematics Tell You?

Sometimes, the risk isn’t how the person is driving, but where they are going. Chris Graham points out that for the recovery community, telematics acts as a vital safeguard for residents and staff alike.

“Knowing where they are traveling to when they are driving… even if they have graduated from the program, knowing where they stop is vitally important,” Graham explains.

He shared a story of one organization that discovered, through telematics data, that an employee was using a company vehicle to take residents to a liquor store at night. Another organization found an employee was running an illicit “chop shop” on the premises after hours. Without that data, those risks would have remained invisible until a catastrophe occurred.

How Can Telematics Create Accountability?

Telematics also provides a “neutral third party” when it comes to training. It’s much easier to have a difficult conversation with a driver when you have a report in your hand.

Daryl Henry recalls an instance where an adult day care center confronted a driver about hitting 85 MPH in a transport vehicle. “The driver said, ‘I wasn’t doing that.’ They said, ‘Yes, you were. Here is the report.’”

When you have documented policies and the tech to back them up you move from “guessing” to “knowing.” In 2026, being able to show an underwriter that you have a formal driver training program and active telematics usage is exactly what sets you apart from your peers and helps you secure the best possible rates.

What is the Goal of Telematics for Recovery Centers?

The goal of using tech like Philadelphia Insurance’s free telematics units or dash cameras isn’t to create a culture of suspicion; it’s to create a culture of safety. As Chris Graham notes: “It’s one thing to have policies and procedures. It’s another thing to actually implement them… not just talking about it, but doing it.”

Watch a video on telematics for recovery centers.