The car crash cameras that could cut your car insurance

Insurer offers customers a 10pc discount if they install a camera in their car - to help with the claims resulting from these crashes

A British insurer is offering customers a 10pc discount if they install a camera in their car.

The discount will mean an average initial saving of £33 a year, according to Swiftcover.com, with further savings possible if the camera helps prove the driver was not responsible for a crash.

Dashboard cameras are widely used internationally and are becoming increasingly popular in the UK.

Drivers can use footage to prove they were not at fault in the event of a collisions. Sometimes clips are passes to the police to help convict dangerous drivers.

Roman Bryl, product manager at swiftcover.com, a subsidiary of AXA Insurance, said: “We believe that by using a dashcam and being able to accurately and quickly establish who was at fault, we will save money and therefore motorists will significantly benefit from lower premiums and more responsible driving.”

A male 20-year-old student from Buckinghamshire could save £94.29 with the 10pc discount, according to Swiftcover.com, while a 67-year-old female retired teacher from Kent could save £18.69.

The average saving will be approximately £33.

The driver will have to purchase a dashcam, which cost from £20 to some £300.

If the camera proves a driver was not at fault for a crash, it could potentially save hundreds of pounds by protecting their no-claims bonus and excess penalty, as well as avoid punitive increases in the following year's premium.

The RAC is planning to launch its own dashboard camera in June and plans to offer telematic 'black boxes' that connect to a mobile app to its 2m members to record their driving behaviour.

RAC Insurance director Kerry Michael said: “Our research shows more than a third of motorists are considering fitting a dashboard-mounted accident camera in their vehicles due to the UK’s burgeoning ‘crash for cash’ culture.

“As long as they are used correctly they are a valuable record of the circumstances that occurred around an accident and as such can help to reduce the cost of personal injury claims which, in turn, will ultimately reduce the cost of insurance.

"Used in conjunction with a telematics ‘black box’ to gain a very accurate information of driver behaviour they can also help customers and insurers to deal with claims more quickly which is good for everybody."

The 'crash for cash' scam involves one car carrying multiple passengers that brakes suddenly to cause the car behind to collide. The passengers in the front vehicle then claim for whiplash injuries.

A new "flash for cash" scam involves motorists flashing their lights to let another car out of a junction and then driving into them.