Front View Camera-anyone else use one?

rhagfo wrote:

CavemanCharlie wrote:
As for the Swoop and Squat insurance fraud thing around here you also get a ticket for not stopping in time when that happens. A camera showing what happened might help in court.

That would be 100% correct without a camera! The assumption is that you were following to closely or not paying attention. Very hard to prove your case without a camera.

This is why I have one, way too many times when towing on two lane roads six cars decide they all want to get around you as a passing lane ends!! Needless to say they really have to slow and squeeze to get in front of you.
I will state on two lanes I go with the flow of traffic, be it the posted limit or five or so over.

Another issue is parking lots. The default position by insurance companies can be 50% fault in parking lot accidents unless there is compelling evidence otherwise. I got in one a while back and my insurance carrier (which was the same as the other party) tried that on me. Fortunately I had a signed note by the other party admitting fault and a witness. A camera would have worked just as well. I did get burned many years ago when I was backed into. Other party claimed I ran into them and the driver/passenger swapped sides too (I presume the actual driver was unlicensed). A camera would have caught all of it.

CavemanCharlie wrote:
As for the Swoop and Squat insurance fraud thing around here you also get a ticket for not stopping in time when that happens. A camera showing what happened might help in court.

That would be 100% correct without a camera! The assumption is that you were following to closely or not paying attention. Very hard to prove your case without a camera.

This is why I have one, way too many times when towing on two lane roads six cars decide they all want to get around you as a passing lane ends!! Needless to say they really have to slow and squeeze to get in front of you.
I will state on two lanes I go with the flow of traffic, be it the posted limit or five or so over.

I just took delivery of this one for my regular car. Looks like it will do the job and is small enough to tuck up tight against the top of the windshield behind the mirror.

4X4Dodger wrote:

rhagfo wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:

rhagfo wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:

Johno02 wrote:
Just remember that legaly these things work both ways. After an accident, the video can become evidence, either for you or against you. I still think I want one.

I am inclined to agree with you. Here are some things to think about.

Can the police seize it as evidence? Will that work for you or against you? It could be made to work against you even IF you are innocent or not at fault.

Can your insurance company use the evidence generated by the camera to raise your rates whether you are at fault in an accident or not if you use the camera as evidence?

Ar you liable for any lawsuit (invasion of privacy, wiretapping etc) if you use this device to identify someone accused of a crime but later found innocent?

These are so new I am not sure we have answers to these questions.

They sound like fun and at first glance a good idea....I am still on the fence about this.

Boy you must be a real bad driver if it worries you that much!
One the biggest insurance scams is "Brake Checking" this is were a car cuts right in front of you and slams on the brakes. Most Likely you will hit them and thy have three or four people in the car all will testify you were tailgating when they needed to brake! That and all have neck injuries. That is when you show the cop the video.

I was posing general questions for people to think about regarding the use of these cameras. They are too new to have generated much in the way of legal precedent.

It's interesting that you turn these general legal questions into what you think are my driving habits.

I have been driving 46 years have had no accidents (chargeable to me) have had only three moving violations and have held a CDL for most of that time. (My family's business was trucking although I was an Engineer by trade and owned a trucking company on the side)

I have driven in many different countries, Europe, Egypt, SE Asia, a Few countries in West Africa and the easy places like the US and Central and South America...

Any more assumptions you want to make about my driving habits please feel free to post them.

Didn't mean to offend, just seemed a bit paranoid the part about it being turned on you in a court action.
Myself feel it will be my friend not an enemy! I have been driving for 48 years and my record is as good as your with the exception of a couple more speeding tickets!

Thanks for the clarification. I think dash cams can be useful and may be a good idea. BUT as I pointed out, in the rush to praise them as a "be all" and "end all" solution we might want to consider the other side of the coin.

The legal issues I raised are real but there hasn't really been enough time for a lot of scenarios to play out.

I think if you have one you should be very careful who knows it and when they know it. The other side of that is if stopped by the police or border patrol you should inform them right away that the encounter is being recorded video and sound. I'ts kind of like "informed consent".

Dash cams are not much different than cell phones or any of the numerous other small recording devices people have these days as far as the legalities. While many of these issues have yet to fully be known or play out I determined that for me the possible benefits outweighed the possible legal negatives. One of those issues is whether you need to inform a police officer. According to court cases you do not. Several courts in several states have upheld that recording a police officer during a traffic stop is legal. Even in states, such as California where I live, that require two party consent for audio recording it has been ruled that police have no expectation of privacy during a traffic stop. So far the Supreme Court has refused to overturn any of these rulings.

As for the Swoop and Squat insurance fraud thing around here you also get a ticket for not stopping in time when that happens. A camera showing what happened might help in court.

mbrower wrote:
Two years ago my wife got T-Boned by a truck that ran a red light. When she regained conscience in the hospital, the state trooper asked her what color was the light when she went through the intersection. She told the officer that she could not remember anything about her drive to work that morning. The state trooper told me that the truck driver was claiming that she ran the red light but the accident was still being investigated. I contacted my insurance company to go ahead and start the claim process.


A couple of days later a parked car had recorded the accident and the video was turned over to the police. It clearly showed the truck running the red light. With out that video, this whole accident and one gigantic lawsuit would have been on me.

All my vehicles have cameras now!

I too am glad your wife came out of that as good as she did and I'm sorry for her pain.

rhagfo wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:

rhagfo wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:

Johno02 wrote:
Just remember that legaly these things work both ways. After an accident, the video can become evidence, either for you or against you. I still think I want one.

I am inclined to agree with you. Here are some things to think about.

Can the police seize it as evidence? Will that work for you or against you? It could be made to work against you even IF you are innocent or not at fault.

Can your insurance company use the evidence generated by the camera to raise your rates whether you are at fault in an accident or not if you use the camera as evidence?

Ar you liable for any lawsuit (invasion of privacy, wiretapping etc) if you use this device to identify someone accused of a crime but later found innocent?

These are so new I am not sure we have answers to these questions.

They sound like fun and at first glance a good idea....I am still on the fence about this.

Boy you must be a real bad driver if it worries you that much!
One the biggest insurance scams is "Brake Checking" this is were a car cuts right in front of you and slams on the brakes. Most Likely you will hit them and thy have three or four people in the car all will testify you were tailgating when they needed to brake! That and all have neck injuries. That is when you show the cop the video.

I was posing general questions for people to think about regarding the use of these cameras. They are too new to have generated much in the way of legal precedent.

It's interesting that you turn these general legal questions into what you think are my driving habits.

I have been driving 46 years have had no accidents (chargeable to me) have had only three moving violations and have held a CDL for most of that time. (My family's business was trucking although I was an Engineer by trade and owned a trucking company on the side)

I have driven in many different countries, Europe, Egypt, SE Asia, a Few countries in West Africa and the easy places like the US and Central and South America...

Any more assumptions you want to make about my driving habits please feel free to post them.

Didn't mean to offend, just seemed a bit paranoid the part about it being turned on you in a court action.
Myself feel it will be my friend not an enemy! I have been driving for 48 years and my record is as good as your with the exception of a couple more speeding tickets!

Thanks for the clarification. I think dash cams can be useful and may be a good idea. BUT as I pointed out, in the rush to praise them as a "be all" and "end all" solution we might want to consider the other side of the coin.

The legal issues I raised are real but there hasn't really been enough time for a lot of scenarios to play out.

I think if you have one you should be very careful who knows it and when they know it. The other side of that is if stopped by the police or border patrol you should inform them right away that the encounter is being recorded video and sound. I'ts kind of like "informed consent".

Thanks for the link to a very interesting and educational tutorial on front view cameras. Since I knew nothing about them except they sound like a great idea, this really helped educate me. Ref:link by rhagfo

So glad your wife survived and got better. The car looks like sudden death. I sincerely hope she is properly compensated for the pain and suffering she has gone through, not to mention your own.

rhagfo wrote:

FrankShore wrote:
Russ & Paula,

Where did you find the mount for that camera, and what make & model camera is that?

This is the link to the review, I don't remember exactly where we ordered it from, but i am very happy with it.

Mini 801

Thanks for the reply