ATRI Driver Camera Survey Will Gather Trucker’s Opinions on Safety and Privacy

ATRI Driver Camera Survey Will Gather Trucker’s Opinions on Safety and Privacy

Accidents will inevitably happen, but proactive safety is vital in proving you are taking safety precautions to prevent accidents from happening. 

But some safety technology raises concerns about driver privacy.

That is why the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) launched a short survey to better understand truck driver perspectives and issues with road and driver-facing cameras.

The survey is available online here and includes questions like: Whether you use a road-facing or driver-facing cameras or not, please indicate on a scale of 1-10 the degree to which:

  • you Like or Don’t Like road-facing or driver-facing cameras
  • you feel that they can improve road safety
  • you think that they protect privacy
  • prevent false crash claims or trial lawyer litigation

Before you take the survey, what are some of the issues and benefits of driver-facing cameras over the last few years?

Issues with driver-facing cameras

In Oct 2021, Trucker News conducted a survey asking, “How do you feel about inward-facing cameras?” and found that 68% agreed with the statement, “I would never give up my privacy like that.”

One person commented that driver-facing cameras are “an invasion of privacy. Simple as that. Safety has nothing to do with it, it’s all about control. Yes, it may help a driver once in a while, but the company uses them for their benefit. That truck is also some driver’s homes. This is yet another reason people should stay away from trucking.”

With privacy being the major concern, one issue that is raised often is what the cameras are doing when you are not driving. Is it really micromanaging at its finest?

ATRI’s survey wants to find out.

Safety benefits of driver-facing cameras

The other side of the driver-facing camera argument is the benefits carriers found when they implemented them in their trucks.

The goal of road and driver-facing cameras is to watch for anything that might take the driver’s attention from the road.

Some trucking companies found that these cameras and warning systems can improve fleet safety with a:

  • 67% reduction in fatigued driving
  • 40% reduction in distracted driving
  • 97% reduction in cell phone use

Does the safety benefit outweigh the potential privacy concerns?

ATRI’s survey will try to measure that.

Insurance benefits of driver-facing cameras

We know that commercial trucking insurance is one of the biggest costs for fleets that has been on the rise for several years.

The other potential benefit to driver-facing cameras, and their safety improvements, is the chance they will reduce commercial trucking insurance premiums, but it will take time because adding technology alone does not do anything.

Companies are not seeing benefits quickly because insurance looks backwards at safety data. It will be year two before you see benefits of implementing safety technology.

However, driver-facing cameras can also reduce litigation risk.

An estimated 70 percent of accidents involving a large truck are not the fault of the truck drivers.

Driver-facing cameras are touted to be beneficial in proving a driver’s innocence in case of an accident.

  • Driver-facing cameras reveal what the driver was doing behind the wheel
  • Video footage can pinpoint roadside and in-cab conditions at the scene of the accident
  • Should a case go to court, footage can establish responsibility or help exonerate the driver and trucking company, which can reduce the amount paid in a settlement and insurance premiums

Do you agree or disagree with the potential issues or benefits of driver-facing cameras? Then take ATRI’s survey!

All responses to this survey will be kept strictly confidential and will only be reported as general statistics. Due to the sensitivity of this research, under NO circumstances will any of your personal or organizational information be released.

While previous ATRI research found that truck drivers have very positive opinions about road-facing cameras, there were numerous concerns over driver-facing cameras.

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