Magistrates and insurers disagree on use of dashcams

The magistrates who sit on police courts and rule on traffic offences are not happy with the idea of Belgium following Russia’s example in the widespread use of “dashcams” – cameras installed on a car’s dashboard to record everything in the event of an accident. Last week, insurance company DVV Verzekeringen said it was interested in providing dashcams to some of its clients.

Russian insurers have started demanding use of the cameras among customers because of widespread insurance fraud, in which motorists fake accidents in an attempt to get insurance money. A dashcam provides evidence against fraudulent claims.

But under strict Belgian privacy laws, the opposing party in an accident claim has to be informed that dashcam images exist, and the video can in no circumstances be uploaded to the internet, according to the Privacy Commission. Such video evidence can also only be used to corroborate the evidence in any action, such as that provided by witnesses.

“We remain dependent on the testimony of police experts who take measurements at the scene and carry out breath tests,” said Kathleen Stinckens of the Association of Police Magistrates. “We also have to recognise that dashcam images can be manipulated. It’s not the motorists’ job to start witch-hunts against each other.”

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