Dash for dash cams

Published: 02 Jul 2018

11 million UK motorists keep a digital eye on the road.

  • A quarter (27%) of UK motorists currently drive with a dash cam, while 72% believe they should be used by all drivers
  • More than a third (36%) of drivers feel safer on the road when using a dash cam
  • 32% of dash cam drivers involved in an accident have been successful in proving they were not responsible
  • Findings come as Aviva launches free dash cam functionality to the Aviva Drive app, helping to make it easier to make a claim.

New research1 from Aviva shows the uptake of dash cams amongst UK motorists is soaring, with 10.9 million drivers2 (27%) currently using them and nearly half of drivers (47%) saying they make accountability for accidents more clear-cut. 

Dash cams, in-car cameras that record the road in front of you, have continued to increase in popularity during the past year, with nearly half (43%) of dash cam users beginning to use the technology in the past 12 months. 

Almost three in four dash cam users (72%) believe that all motorists should follow suit, while over two fifths (42%) think it should be a legal requirement for young or new drivers to have dash cams fitted in their car as standard. 

Aviva has launched the Aviva Dash Cam functionality on its drive app. The free, and easy to use, dash cam enables more drivers – including non-Aviva customers – to benefit from the automatic collision detection technology3, making it easier and simpler for people to explain a collision when they make a claim. 

Safer roads and peace of mind

Safety is a key factor in the increased use of dash cams, with more than a third (36%) of motorists feeling safer when driving with one. Additionally, a quarter (25%) stated widespread use of them would make UK motorists safer drivers. This figure increases to 31% for those aged 25 to 34 compared to only 15% for drivers aged 55 and over. 

Nearly a fifth (17%) of those who drive with a dash cam do so because they experienced issues trying to prove they were not at fault in an accident in the past. 

25 %

think widespread use of dash cams would make UK drivers safer

 

Almost half (47%) of drivers think widespread use would lead to greater accountability on the roads, providing clear proof of the cause of accidents.

Indeed, 48% drive with a dash cam because of the peace of mind it brings while they are on the road, knowing that - in the unlikely event they should have a forward collision or witness an accident - they would be able to share the footage captured by the dash cam with their insurer to explain what happened. 

Dash cam footage helping to improve the claims process

Of those who have had an accident on the road, almost two thirds (62%) of dash cam drivers used the footage as part of their claim. For just under a third (32%) of these motorists, this helped to prove they were not at fault.

In-car technology is becoming more sophisticated, with motorists increasingly turning to telematics and other gadgets to monitor how they drive and to improve their safety. The benefits of dash cams, in particular, are now understood by a greater number of drivers, in terms of the feelings of confidence and safety they bring, but also in the role the footage can play should they need to make an insurance claim.

For motorists unlucky enough to find themselves caught in an accident, having dash cam footage can provide peace of mind and lessen what is already a stressful time, by providing visible evidence of the incident.

 At Aviva we’re are committed to improving the claims process for our customers by making it as simple and quick as possible. We know that some things are tricky to explain, which is why we’ve added a dash cam to our Aviva Drive app – we want to help drivers explain what happened and avoid potentially lengthy liability disputes.

Paul Heybourne, Head of Digital Innovation

More than a fifth (22%) of those who have a dash cam and have witnessed an accident on the road, which they weren’t involved with, stated their footage captured the incident. A similar figure (21%) claimed their dash cam would have captured the accident had it been switched on.

10.9 million

UK drivers currently using dash cams

When it comes to the claims process, a third (33%) of motorists who have submitted dash cam footage as part of a claim found the process easy, compared to only 24% for those who did not submit footage.

Additionally, a quarter (25%) of dash cam drivers found the claims process quick, compared to only 17% of those who did not use footage from their in-car technology.

To find out more, or to download the app, please visit: https://www.aviva.co.uk/car-insurance/drive/

- ENDS -

References:

1 Research conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Aviva in June 2018. Survey respondents included a nationally representative sample 2,438 UK motorists.

2 Number of total full driving licences in the UK as of March 2018 according to the DVLA: 40,331,643. Percentage of UK motorists who currently drive with a dash cam: 27%. 27% of 40,331,643 = 10,889,544.

3  The dash cam functionality of the Aviva Drive app offers automatic collision detection, so rather than saving footage of the whole journey, it will only save a short clip if there's an accident, saving storage space. The footage can be sent via e-mail straight to the Aviva claims teams.

Media enquires:

John Franklin, Aviva media relations:
john.s.franklin@aviva.com
01603 680795

Instinctif Partners:
aviva@instinctif.com
020 7457 2020

Notes to editors:

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