Karens School of Motoring & Automatic Pass

Safety recording for cars

18 December, 2012

D ashboard cameras are little cameras that basically will run automatically every time you turn on your ignition.

More commonly they are used by police officers and have proven to be extremely useful in getting accurate recordings of road accidents and pursuit incidents.

Over time, these police cameras recordings have been presented to the public in news and tv reality shows.

But how many road users are appreciative of their uses and do the authorities consider their benefits?

The idea is that this device will act like a black box type instrument and if you're involved in an accident then you can use the footage taken during the accident could prove useful in trials or even in insurance claims (assuming you didn't cause the accident).

At the time of writing this article, I've not had any insurance confirm any discounts or incentives to fit the camera.

If you have a high-resolution camera installed in your car, it makes sense that your chances of winning your case is higher than when you just rely on witness or police testimony.

If you have an actual recording of the incident, you almost don't have to argue your case because it is considered won.

As a result, the dashboard camera has turned from a police tool into a civilian's best friend.

Despite its possible benefits, very few people have dashboard cameras installed in their cars although driving instructors are beginning to use them for training purposes.

Those Instructors already using the cameras are producing "how to" videos of some of the more difficult encounters which the new driver may experience. These include large roundabouts with multiple lanes, complex junctions, one way systems and even parking manoeuvres.

With the cost of keeping a car constantly on the increase, these cameras are a possibly fantastic way to view a scenario and develop learning through real life events .

Watch the compilation of clips of near misses and road traffic incidents but beware it does contain some frightening footage.

Put your seat belt on before playing this clip!