A haulage company is set to make a £20,000 saving on its insurance premium after installing Smart Witness accident cameras to its fleet of 50 vehicles.
Wrings Transport spent £9,000 on the devices, which record the road ahead and were developed to establish liability quickly after accidents.
Stuart Wring, MD of Wrings Transport, based in Hallen in South Gloucestershire, decided to purchase the cameras after becoming concerned about cash-for-crash scams in which fraudsters submit bogus injury and damage claims.
In just one year, his accident rate has reduced by 50 per cent, which will lead to his insurance premium remaining static.
He said: “Our insurer hasn’t cut the premium but has indicated that it won’t go up if we keep our good practices in place.
“We pay around £200,000 a year and if it doesn’t go up we will save around 10 per cent a year which is £20,000.”
He added: “On average, we used to have around two bumps a month and that has reduced by around half which has probably saved us around £10,000.
“I think that’s because the cameras improve the behavior of our drivers. They know their journey is being recorded all the time.
“We also have stickers on our vehicles warning other road users that all of our journeys are recorded.”
And just a few months after purchasing the cameras, Mr Wring avoided being served with a claim for £700 when one of his vehicles was hit by a Jaguar in Somerset when it drifted into the lane of the oncoming vehicle.
Mr Wring said: “I don’t think it was a cash for crash scam but the driver tried to pin liability on us.
“He had about £700 worth of damage to his car in scratches but luckily when we sent him the footage he actually phoned me to apologise and offered to pay for any damage to our vehicle – of which there was just a few minor scratches.
“I was just pleased not to have to pay for his damage.”
Simon Marsh, managing director of Smart Witness, said: “Our cameras are saving money for businesses up and down the country at a time when budgets are squeezed.”
“They not only help to save money on insurance premiums but they have also helped to cut accident rates. But importantly the camera never lies, so they also determine liability just how they did for Mr Wring.
“In this case, the recording device saved £700 but who knows what the real cost could have been in wasted man hours while blame was established.
“Meanwhile, everyday they provide a peace of mind for the employer who know Smart Witness will deter cash for crash fraudsters who file bogus injury and damage claims.”
Around 550,000 whiplash claims a year are filed every year in the UK, but insurance experts have estimated that up to 60 per cent are bogus.
It makes the ‘cash for crash’ scam a £1 billion-a-year fraud.
The shocking figures were given to MPs by insurers who said the UK had now become the ‘whiplash capital of the world.’
According to the AA, since 2006 there has been a 60 per cent rise in the number of personal injury claims while the number of reported accidents on UK roads has fallen by 20 per cent over the same period.
The cameras, a bit like a black box journey recorder, fit on to the windscreen, are powered through the car’s cigarette lighter or can be directly wired in.
They record the driver’s view of the road ahead and also monitor the car’s location, speed, breaking and impact G-forces.
Smart Witness prices start at £149 for the standard edition going up to £239 for the professional edition.
The system is recommended by major insurers for hauliers, fleet managers and private motorists. It is officially approved by Transport for London.
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