Designing 'Time Away' to protect data integrity and rebuild user trust
My role: end-to-end from strategy to design execution
As Head of Product Design, I led the full lifecycle of this redesign, but crucially, this was also a hands-on solo project. From initial behaviour analysis and feature strategy to detailed UX, copy, interaction design, and stakeholder engagement, every aspect of the work was created by me.
This case study shows not only my ability to think strategically but to execute high-quality product design independently and at depth.
The problem was a system that was too easy to exploit
The previous “Pause recording” feature was a weak point in the user experience and the insurance data pipeline. It allowed users to disable trip capture instantly, without any reason or validation, for up to five days at a time. There was no audit trail, no scheduling, and the UI was unclear and misleading. In effect, users could opt out of data collection at will, and the system offered no way to distinguish legitimate breaks from intentional misuse.
This created wide-reaching integrity issues. Users paused trip capture before high-risk journeys to avoid affecting their driving scores. Others simply misunderstood the interface and unintentionally left trip capture off. Legitimate users with good intent had no way to plan a proper break, leading to gaps in data and frustration. For insurers, the consequences were serious: inflated scores, compromised risk models, and diminishing trust in data reliability.
Above: Screenshots of the old version (Pause recording). This was added around 7 years ago and hadn’t been improved since.
Understanding the different user behaviours
Before rethinking the feature, I mapped the behavioural segments to understand how different users were interacting with it:
1. Casual users with neutral intent
These users didn’t mean to manipulate the system but often misunderstood it. Some wanted to skip tracking a single trip, others were just exploring settings. The UI’s misleading slider caused confusion, leading to data gaps and lower scoring accuracy.
2. Users who were actively gaming the system
This segment exploited the feature to avoid recording high-risk trips. They would pause capture just before driving and resume it immediately afterwards to artificially inflate their averages. The lack of controls made this behaviour invisible in analytics, beyond simple on/off timestamps.
3. Legitimate absentees acting in good faith
Users on holiday, in recovery, or not using their vehicle for valid reasons were left unsupported. With no scheduling option and only a five-day limit, they either accepted data penalties or tried to “game” the system themselves just to stay fair.
Together, these behaviours compromised the integrity of data, penalised responsible users, and limited the ability of insurers to model risk accurately.
A clear objective for a better solution
The goal was to create a transparent, auditable feature that allowed users to pause trip capture responsibly, and only when it made sense. That meant balancing two core needs:
For users: A fair, clear way to pause trip tracking when they are genuinely not driving
For insurers: Strong controls that protect data integrity and prevent manipulation
Designing the new feature: Time Away
The new feature, called Time Away, lets users schedule a period in which trip capture is disabled, with automatic reactivation at the end. It requires users to give a reason, and logs each action for future review.
Constraints and core rules
Users must set both a start and end time
Trip capture automatically resumes afterwards
A reason is required each time
Only one active Time Away period is allowed
Users can cancel early, but the action is logged with a timestamp and reason
Trip capture status is shown clearly throughout the app
Feature placement
Time Away lives in Settings > Time Away, positioned intentionally in a less impulsive area of the app to discourage misuse.
Above: A selection of screens from the updated ‘Time Away’ experience.
Above: An interactive prototype was created for presentation, testing and feedback purposes.
Above: A couple of screenshots from the Time Away and Home Screen showing trip capture when it has been disabled by a user.
A user experience built on clarity, fairness and control
The UX was carefully designed to prevent misuse while remaining supportive and accessible. I used clear language, scheduled-only actions, and visual feedback to reinforce control and responsibility.
Key design choices included:
No instant toggle
Scheduling only, to eliminate impulse misuseAutomatic re-enable
Prevents gaps if users forget to resume trip captureMandatory reason input
Adds accountability and allows insurers to audit patternsIntuitive, readable interface
Clear states for trip capture: enabled, disabled, and scheduled
Active Time Away periods are always visible on the home screenCancellation flow with confirmation
Users can cancel early, but must confirm and provide a reason
Old system vs new system
For users
The old system:
Paused trip capture immediately, with no future scheduling
Confused users with misleading labels like “Restart recording”
Required manual reactivation
Displayed status in unreadable dark text
Failed to explain what “paused” meant or when it applied
With Time Away:
Users can plan ahead with defined start/end times
Clear terms like Trip capture enabled/disabled reduce confusion
Automatic reactivation ensures data resumes reliably
Labels are intuitive: ‘Apply’, ‘Cancel time away’, etc.
Capture status is always visible and easy to read
Users feel more in control and less likely to make mistakes
For insurers
Previously:
No insight into why or when trip capture was paused
No way to prevent strategic misuse
No audit logs or ability to review past actions
Risk of widespread data gaps with no explanation
With Time Away:
All pauses are scheduled and include a reason
Full audit trails and logs
Suspicious behaviour patterns can be flagged
Clearer user behaviour supports more accurate risk models
Fraud detection is enhanced through repeat-pattern analysis
Mitigating misuse by design
To ensure Time Away isn’t exploited:
No instant toggling, only scheduling
All reasons and timestamps are stored
Patterns of behaviour are analysed to flag potential abuse
Terms and in-app warnings explain that misuse can affect scoring or policy eligibility
Future enhancements include frequency limits, automatic flags, and conflict detection (e.g. movement detected during Time Away)
Implementation and rollout strategy
The feature was rolled out in two stages:
V1: Core launch
Introduced scheduling, reason input, automatic reactivation
UI designed for clarity and auditability
V2: Enhancements
Introduced tighter usage controls
Built tools for insurer-specific policy enforcement
Added fraud indicators and internal dashboards
The approach was compliance-first, but user-friendly by design.
Measuring success
The success of Time Away will be measured through both positive adoption and fraud mitigation. Success metrics and fraud indicators are tracked internally and visualised in supporting dashboards (included as tables in the full case study document).
The goal is not just adoption but correct usage, and confidence in the data it protects.
Above: A snapshot of some of the key success measures, fraud and abuse patterns and the initial release inclusions.
What I contributed beyond design
In addition to creating every screen, interaction, and copy element, I also:
Developed the feature’s tone and terminology guidelines
Led all cross-functional reviews with legal, compliance, product and engineering
Mapped the behavioural segments to business impact
Wrote microcopy, error states, and help content
Created the audit logging logic and flagging criteria
Contributed to roadmap prioritisation and rollout strategy
Case study conclusion
This project reflects my ability to think holistically as a Head of Product Design, while also delivering the detail, clarity, and quality expected from a senior hands-on contributor. I owned the end-to-end process, from problem definition to final UI, and balanced user empathy with business-critical requirements.
Time Away is not just a feature. It’s a strategic safeguard, a trust-building tool, and an example of design that protects both the user and the data.
