The Benefits of Using a Dash Cam in Nova Scotia

The use of dash cams in passenger vehicles is becoming more and more common in Nova Scotia. Affordable, reliable, and easy-to-use, dash cams are extremely valuable devices, whose potential benefits far outweigh their purchase costs.

In Nova Scotia, motorists have the privilege of driving through stunning maritime scenery on the province’s roads and highways. A small perk of owning a dash cam means maintaining a video record of the province’s natural beauty from the point of view of your vehicle’s dashboard. But even more important than documenting the landscape, dash cams can provide drivers with vital pieces of indisputable evidence when they encounter wrongdoing behind the wheel.

Operating a dash cam in your car may have some small drawbacks. Most dash cams only provide a frontal view, and so they won’t be able to record the area behind or around a car. And, at a time when distracted driving is on the rise in Nova Scotia, dash cams may provide an additional, unwanted distraction for motorists who have difficulty keeping their focus on the road.

But for the most part, these self-operating recording devices are unintrusive, effective, and extremely practical. Installing a dash cam in your passenger vehicle may be one of the best decisions about additional automotive security you ever make.

Dash Cams Can Record Accidents, Illegal Activity, and Property Damage

Commonly used in emergency vehicles like police cars and ambulances, dash cams are increasingly being installed in passenger vehicles across the country. When vehicles equipped with these security devices encounter any type of wrongdoing on the road, essentially their dash cams act as an impartial witness. Video footage does not portray the events it records with any kind of bias or motive. Instead, when used as evidence of illegal activity, videos captured by dash cams simply show the facts as they unfolded.

If you’ve been involved in a collision with another vehicle, video footage captured by your dash cam can provide irrefutable evidence that can be used to determine which driver was at fault. This video evidence can be extremely useful if you’ve sustained injuries in a car accident caused by another driver’s negligence.

Without a dash cam, it can be difficult to prove the illegal or reckless behaviour of another driver on the road. In fact, dash cams have become an essential tool for defending oneself against staged collisions and insurance fraud. Sometimes, drivers may intentionally stage car accidents in an attempt to unfairly recover damages. In Canada, it is estimated that fake fender-benders and other forms of intentional accidents constituting insurance fraud cost several billion dollars each year. With video proof of illegal activity on the road, a motorist whose vehicle is equipped with a dash cam can refute fraudulent claims put forth by willfully destructive drivers.

Most dash cams are programmed to begin recording as soon as the driver starts the ignition, recording video to the device’s memory card whenever the engine is running. However, many dash cams are also equipped with motion sensors that trigger the device to begin recording when it detects movement nearby. That means that, if your parked car was damaged in a hit and run, or a thief attempts to break into your vehicle, video evidence recorded by your dash cam may help track down the responsible party.

Reviewing Your Teenager’s Driving Habits with Dash Cam Footage

Any parent of a newly licensed teenage driver is likely to worry about their safety behind the wheel. Worrying about their teenager’s safety when they’ve taken out the family car can keep parents up at night, and rightfully so.

Young drivers are at a higher risk of being involved in an accident due to their lack of experience on the road. In fact, car accidents are the leading cause of death among the province’s youth, and Nova Scotians between the ages of 15-24 are the demographic most likely to be seriously injured or killed in a collision.

Concerned parents who have installed dash cams in their vehicles are able to review video footage of their teenager’s actions whenever they take the family car for a spin. By doing so, they can ensure that their newly licensed child is practicing safe driving habits, even without the supervision of an adult inside the vehicle. Parents who notice their teenage driver developing improper or dangerous habits can discuss their concerns with their kids, and accompany them on practice driving sessions to address any difficulties they may be having and improve their skills behind the wheel.

Accident Footage Can Expedite Insurance Claims

If you’ve been injured in a car accident caused by another driver’s negligence, you may be eligible to recover damages for financial losses you’ve incurred as a result.

In accordance with the province’s Automobile Insurance Fault Determination Regulations mandated by Nova Scotia’s Insurance Act, following a car accident, insurance companies will review the circumstances of the accident and assign degrees of fault to each driver involved. Without video footage of your accident, it may be easier for an insurance company to determine that you and the other driver share liability for the collision. By doing so, the amount of accident benefits you’re eligible to recover may be reduced, and your insurance rates may be unfairly increased.

If you believe the other driver was solely responsible for causing an accident in which you sustained serious injuries, dash cam footage might help substantiate your claim. Footage recorded by your dash cam may clearly demonstrate that your collision was caused by another driver’s negligence on the road.

In order to prove the other driver’s liability, a Nova Scotia car accident lawyer may present your insurance provider with various forms of evidence, including footage of the collision recorded by your dash cam. Your claim for accident benefits might be expedited if your insurance company is willing to accept video proof. In these situations, the impartial record of events captured by your dash cam may make other forms of evidence superfluous. Insurance companies may determine who is at fault simply by viewing dash cam footage, instead of scrutinizing photos of the accident scene or interviewing individuals who witnessed the collision.

Sometimes, in very unfortunate circumstances, the injuries sustained in car accidents resulting from another driver’s negligence can be catastrophic and life-changing. In these situations, the regular accident benefits they receive may not be sufficient to cover their total financial losses. When a victim’s injuries cause emotional trauma, mental anguish, and a diminished quality of life, a Nova Scotia car accident lawyer may be able to help file a claim for damages.

Video footage recorded by an injured victim’s dash cam may be presented as evidence in court, and could potentially illustrate the extent of the responsible driver’s negligence. By providing substantive evidence like dash cam footage, a car accident lawyer may be able to help  catastrophically injured accident victims pursue damages for:

• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• And possibly more

Contact Preszler Injury Lawyers Today

If you’ve been injured in a car accident caused by another driver’s negligent behaviour on the road, video footage recorded by a dash cam may provide clear evidence of their fault.

If your dash cam caught the circumstances of your accident on camera, Preszler Car Accident Lawyers may be able to review the footage and provide you with useful advice about legal options that may be available to you. To discuss the circumstances of your accident and learn if you’re eligible to pursue damages for financial losses you’ve incurred as a result of your injuries, contact us today.