Are dash cams a win-win? Thailand seems to think so

Over the past decade the dashboard camera, or dash cam, has been the unsung hero in providing the world with great YouTube content. 

On a more serious note however, the little gadget has helped people capture video evidence of road accidents, insurance fraudsters and tragic plane crashes. They have even fascinated scientists around the world with images of a meteor entering the atmosphere in spectacular fashion.

With its potential to help settle disputes in the event of an accident, the Thai government has stepped in to encourage its widespread usage. The country’s Office of Insurance Commission recently issued an order to insurance companies to give discounts of between five and 10 per cent on auto insurance premiums to vehicles that are equipped with a dash cam. 

To qualify for these discounts, customers only need to present photographs of a dash cam that is installed in the front of their cars. The car owner then has to ensure that the dashcam is operational during the course of the insurance coverage.

The explosion of dash cam footage over the years is largely thanks to Russia’s Mad Max style motorways. Its combination of dangerous roads, road-rage prone motorists, allegedly corrupt police, accident-staging gangs, insurance extortionists, and not to mention insurance denials, has forced owners to install these devices to provide video evidence for the courts.

“You can get into your car without your pants on, but never without a dashcam,” proclaims Russian rights activist, Aleksei Dozorov. “It’s better than keeping a lead pipe under your seat for protection,” wrote Russian journalist, Marina Galperina on the subject of Russian dash cams.

That being said, the widespread adoption of dashcams wouldn’t have been possible without the Russian Interior Ministry removing legal hurdles for installing dash cams in 2009. In other parts of the world however, the dash cam is seen as having the potential to contravene people’s privacy rights.

In Switzerland its usage in public spaces is not illegal, but it is strongly discouraged. Over in Germany, dash cam video footage is permitted in a court of law but not on social media. Regulations on the issue vary between states in the US, whereas the usage of dash cams are banned in Austria due to privacy concerns.

Thankfully dash cams are allowed in Australia, as long as it is not deemed as infringing on personal privacy in a way that is incriminating or inappropriate.

But with our roads getting more crowded, and motorists getting more careless and distracted, shouldn’t we start looking at incentivising these devices? After all, people might think twice before cutting across a four lane highway without using their signals while flipping their middle finger in the air in the knowledge that they'll almost certainly be recorded.

Here's the latest Dash Cam Owners Australia compilation, for fun.

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