In the first half of this year, over 24,000 video clips were uploaded to a web portal created by British dash cam company Nextbase. This portal helps users report alleged driving offences by fellow motorists.
Launched five years ago, the National Dash Cam Safety Portal allows Nextbase customers and other dash cam users to upload footage of bad driving and report it to the police. Unsurprisingly, you can also find links to buy the latest Nextbase models on the portal’s homepage. Thanks to its popularity, drivers have submitted a total of 135,000 motoring offenses over the past five years. Nextbase predicts that the number of videos reported to UK police via the portal will increase by 31% this year.
The number of dash cams on the roads is rising quickly, driven by stories of "cash for crash" scams and the easy availability of the technology. Estimates suggest that about one in six cars now record their journeys and the behavior of other drivers.
Many cyclists are also using cameras to capture and report reckless driving. Nextbase reports that around 70% of video submissions to the portal lead to further police action, such as warning letters, awareness courses, fixed penalty points, or court summonses.
This year, drivers in the West Midlands, West Mercia, Northumberland, Surrey, and South Yorkshire have submitted the most reports, with 18,000 videos uploaded from these regions alone. This number surpasses the total uploads from the entire country in 2021.
Nextbase also shared that 70% of drivers believe all cars should come with dash cams, and online processing of uploads has saved an estimated 25 years of police time. However, this assumes that a similar number of incidents would have been reported traditionally, which is unlikely.
