Rise in dashcam footage sent to police leads to record action

A surge in dashcam and mobile phone footage sent to police has resulted in a record year of action against dangerous drivers, senior officers say.

Devon and Cornwall Police said there were a record 4,736 submissions of footage in 2022, up 151% on 2021.

And the force took action against a record 3,400 motorists in 2022, a 135% increase on 2021.

Force road safety lead Adrian Leisk said he was "incredibly grateful" for public support to reduce road harm.

The driver of a tractor towing a large trailer was unaware of a large, loose tyre attached to the rear of his trailer with a strap

Dangerous manoeuvres and overtaking, insecure loads and drivers jumping red lights were some of the offences captured on dashcams, helmet cameras and mobile phones, said police.

Footage is uploaded to the Operation Snap page for viewing by police, who launched the video submissions operation in 2019.

Police said two examples of insecure loads on major routes had the "potential to result in death or serious injury".

In one clip released by officers, the driver of a tractor towing a large trailer was unaware of a large, loose tyre attached to the rear of his trailer with a strap.

After dragging it behind the vehicle, the strap eventually broke, leaving the tyre in the middle of the highway.

Building materials were caught flying off a pick-up truck on a main road

In another clip, wooden planks and other building items were caught on camera flying off the rear of a pick-up truck on a three-lane section of the A38, having not been secured safely.

Mr Leisk said that dashcam, mobile phone and body camera ownership was "on the increase".

He said; "I want to make it very clear that, if you drive dangerously in Devon and Cornwall, there is a very good chance someone will have captured it on camera and will submit that footage to the police."