Sure, a dash cam is a great gadget, but do you really need one?
The answer is a resounding yes.
Dashcams do a lot, and from satisfying the worries of parents, to saving yourself from becoming the victim of an insurance scam, your dash cam can really be your saving grace in a multitude of situations.
The modern cameras of today can really do a lot, and provide you with a level of safety and security that can be found nowhere else.
Six Reasons Why You Should Have a Dash Cam in Your Car
The six reasons why you should have a dashcam in your car are:
1. Record dangerous drivers
Dangerous drivers are everywhere, and you’re not like to find many drivers, or passengers, who can say they’ve never personally encountered one during all the time they’ve spent on the road.
Swerving around the road in suspected DWI cases, dangerous tailgating, or committing acts of road rage, these people put other drivers at serious risk while trying to get from point A to point B.
The worst part is that many of these cases go cold, with collecting evidence on these dangerous drivers being quite difficult, but a dash cam changes that completely.
For recording dangerous drivers, you really only need a basic dash cam unit, and one that’s a bit stealthy as not to be spotted right away.
Something like the Rexing V1P, with its discreet design, 170-degree sweeping angle viewing, and WDR technology, lets you keep your eye on the road and on dangerous drivers that may be around you without being obvious or potentially putting yourself in any danger.
2. Protect Yourself in Case of an Accident
Accidents happen, and when they’re not your fault, they can be even more frustrating.
Sometimes, a guilty party will place the blame on the other driver to take the blame away from themselves, and other times two drivers may truly not be aware of who caused the accident to occur, and in both these instances, a dash cam can help.
Video recording auto accidents are the single most popular reason drivers invest in a dashcam, and with good reason. Should you need to prove your innocence in the accident to a court, your footage will serve as the perfect evidence.
For a dash cam to protect you in an accident, you’ll want something with G sensor capabilities, loop video recording, and a GPS that marks your speed and location at the accident scene.
One perfect pick is the Rove R2-4K Dash Cam, a camera with hands-free continuous loop recording, G sensors to lock in footage in case of an accident, GPS tagging, and accident auto-detection.
3. Satisfies the worries of parents and concerned car owners
If you share a vehicle with friends or family, or your child is fresh on the road, a dash cam can also be a great help in keeping an eye on your vehicle and their driving.
Parents and vehicle owners can make sure that their car is being used responsibly and is in good hands, and that any accidents are not due to reckless driving on the child or borrower’s part.
For this need, you’ll want to see a camera that has high storage capabilities, allowing you to record several hours of video on one SD card at once for you to review if needed.
One suitable pick for a parent or vehicle owner to keep surveillance on other drivers driving their vehicle or their children is the Vantrue N4 3 Channel 4K Dash Cam.
With an included 32GB micro SD card, they can record and store around 8 to 10 hours of video at one time, allowing users to save and store several trips to be looked back on later. The included GPS capabilities allow footage to be tracked by location as well as speed.
4. Record your road trip
For creative folks, a dash cam can be a really fun way to track the road part of your vacation and keep those really special memories.
You may have all the photos from the locations you visit, but what about those picturesque towns you just pass through?
Your dashcam records every highway and byway you pass through safely and without being a distraction to you.
After your trip, you can edit the footage to create videos that highlight all your favorite parts.
For recording your road trip, one perfect cam pick is the ThinkWare U1000, which supports a 32GB micro SD card for recording up to 8 to 10 hours of footage at a time, a built-in GPS tracker, and both front and rear cams. It also comes with an advanced Parking Mode (Impact & Motion Detection with Built-In Voltmeter).
What you want out of a road trip dash cam is the ability to record and store a lot of video at once, as well as a great picture worth saving, both of which are offered by the ThinkWare U1000.
5. Protect yourself from fraud
Insurance fraud is a more common problem than many may think, and it can leave good honest drivers in a position where they’re responsible for paying for accidents that aren’t their fault.
One common method is the “swoop and squat”, where a driver swoops in front of another driver, only to quickly stop, causing a fender bender type accident they can use to extort money from the driver victim.
Due to the fender bender damage, the “swoop and squat” driver will often be deemed innocent in the accident, causing the responsible driver to be at fault. With a dashcam, however, the proof is in the footage, and this and many other insurance scams can be avoided.
For protecting yourself against insurance fraud cases, you’ll want a basic cam with a good wide-angle range.
One such dash cam to fit this need is the VIOFO A119, which has a stealthy design, 140 angles viewing range, WDR for low-light recording, and loop recording. The discreet design allows you to keep yourself protected without necessarily advertising your dashboard camera’s installation.
6. Evidence for Filing Insurance Claims
There was once a time when filing an auto insurance claim was hard to defend with physical evidence. That was when auto insurance companies were still hesitant to accept new technology that can have a beneficial impact on their customers.
Even when you’re just applying for insurance, they find it hard to trust that your proposed vehicle security systems and collision avoidance systems will help reduce collisions.
But time has changed. And since insurers will need proof that the damage to your car is caused by an accident before they approve your claim, recordings from dash cams have become an increasingly useful device among drivers. It not only serves as a tool for recording scenic views during road trips, but it also became a shred of important evidence for vehicle accident insurance claims.
Since these dash cams are small video cameras that you can easily purchase in the electronics/technology section of any store, online or physical, almost every driver can easily get hold of one.
Most dash cams are also conveniently priced such as this Aduro U-Drive Pro HD DVR Dash Cam that you can get for just $29. They are also designed to be mounted to the dashboard or windshield of your vehicle for your convenience.
If installed from that position, the dash cam will be able to record what occurs in front of your vehicle. If you’ve done a little research, you’d see that more modern models are even equipped to record with rear-facing and interior video. Some can even record interior audio. The catch? It’s more expensive, of course.
Conclusion
To sum it up, it’s clear that dashcams can do a lot.
From filming road trips to protecting your parked vehicles, and even helping you file insurance claims, dash cams are indeed one of the most important car gadgets that every driver should invest in.