A plowing job in Hol municipality took an unexpected turn when the phone call from Safedrive came in. Leif Johnny Nestegard had won 100,000 kroner – and quickly decided to give the same amount to Hol Sports Club.
When Bilberger Per Ole Øvergård won 100,000 kroner through the Safedrive Reward, he chose to give back the same amount to the local community. In Nærøysund, the funds were divided between two organizations that create meeting places and community – and received praise from the mayor.
There was a good atmosphere in the council chamber in Nærøysund when the funds from the Safedrive Reward and the Tryggve Fund were distributed.
The winner, car mechanic Per Ole Øvergård from Rørvik, won 100,000 kroner when he became Safe Driver of the Month in January. He also got to distribute an additional 100,000 kroner to local causes.
Mayor Amund Hellesø (Ap) took the opportunity to highlight the importance of the work Safedrive does.
– We would like to thank Safedrive for the work you do. It is important for us in the municipalities that you focus on safe driving. At the same time, this helps create a warmer society. We know what it costs when lives are lost in traffic, says Hellesø.
Mayor Amund Hellesø (Ap) and Veronica Isabel Pedersen, director of communications and policy at Safedrive, together with monthly winner Per Ole Øvergård and representatives from the recipients LHL Vikna and DRIVE Norway department Rørvik.
For Safedrive, the rewards program is about influencing behavior over time.
– We don't believe that punishment alone creates safer traffic. We believe in rewards, competition and mastery. When people are given something to strive for, and are recognized for doing it right over time, it actually changes how they drive, says Veronica Isabel Pedersen, Director of Communications and Policy at Safedrive.
– Safedrive is practically Norway's most important car game. The difference is that you don't win by driving the fastest – you win by driving the safest.
Øvergård drives a lot in his job as a tow truck driver, and was told that he was in the top tier of the competition.
– I try to drive well. I'm a car mechanic, so I have to stay within traffic limits, he says.
He kept the prize of 100,000 kroner for himself.
– I'm restoring a Trans Am, so it fits well, he says with a smile.
DRIVE department Rørvik and LHL Vikna go far for people in the local community. Now they are getting funding to do even more.
Through the Tryggve Fund, Øvergård chose to distribute an additional 100,000 kroner to two local recipients: LHL Vikna and DRIVE Norge, Rørvik branch.
– It is based on volunteerism. They need additional funding too. Both do important work for people in the local community, he says.
Mayor Hellesø highlights the importance of such contributions:
– These funds mean a lot to volunteerism. They are actors who create activity, belonging and security – and that is absolutely crucial for local communities like ours.
At DRIVE in Rørvik, the funds go to work with youth.
– We try to be role models for the young people who are with us. Here they get to learn, master and be part of a community, says Jim Rune Laugen.
LHL Vikna uses the funds for activities for people with various health challenges.
– Such an award means a lot. It gives us a greater opportunity to take care of our members, says Håkon Sørø.
The chatter and laughter were relaxed after the award ceremony in Nærøysund.
Pedersen believes the link between traffic safety and community is crucial.
– Every day, our users help to make over a million trips safer. That is what is Norway's largest community along the road – ordinary people helping each other drive a little safer, she explains. – When we can also connect it to something positive locally, you get an effect that is much greater than a single prize.
The mayor agrees.
– The work Safedrive does for traffic safety means a lot, and we greatly appreciate that, concludes Hellesø.
