To make sure that you have a record of your day to day driving, a dash cam is a necessary tool. They’re lightweight, compact, and most are easy to install- you can either install via your car cigarette lighter socket, or you can hardwire it.
It’s a perfect way to insure your driving - rarely is dash cam footage inadmissible in court or insurance claims. Now more than ever, you’ll need a dash cam to secure your vehicle, and not just because of accidents that can happen on the road.
People interacting with your car while it’s in park is also an important thing to consider, and knowing whoever goes inside your vehicle is important as well these days.
With the coronavirus spreading, you’ll need to make necessary adjustments to keep you and your family safe- and the way you use your dash cam will be instrumental in doing so.
Here are some common ways you can use your dash cam to keep an eye on your vehicle during the COVID-19 outbreak:
Contact tracing
If you’re a rideshare operator (such as Uber), or if you’re running a cab business, you’ll be sure to have dozens of passengers within any given day. While foot traffic is a lot less these days due to most people going into quarantine and isolation, that means that whoever is out and about these days can be considered at risk.
You, the driver, is also at risk for having passengers that still travel around during this outbreak.
You’ll be staying in a small space with someone that might potentially be infected; it’s best to have a log of your passengers should something come up.
Regularly, a dash cam records outwards, but there are also dual dash cams that can record both in and out of the vehicle. If you have one already, make sure to always check your feed especially if you drive professionally.
Should any of your passengers exhibit symptoms, make sure to re-check your log. Once you start showing symptoms yourself (which we hope not), at least you have a log that healthcare professionals can use for contact tracing.
It’s important to trace whoever has had contact with the virus as this helps the healthcare system prioritize who was really infected, and who has had contact with whoever has contracted the virus to be placed under monitoring or investigation.
Here’s an excellent dash cam that’s perfect for cab drivers and rideshare operators:
Monitoring your vehicle
The coronavirus is a highly contagious disease. It spreads via droplets, and can last on surfaces for hours, going on to infect other people. We all have a responsibility to act as if we have the virus, and to act as if all surfaces that we touch have it.
Your car is no exception to this rule. With plenty of high-touch surfaces, it’s a hotbed for the spread of the virus. With its mobility and confined spaces, it’s one factor of everyday life that we should keep an eye on during this outbreak.
There’s a good reason why health organizations all over the world are urging the public to limit their travels to only picking up essentials, but even so, being outside still puts you at risk.
To make sure that you know exactly which surfaces to sanitize in your car’s exterior, a dash cam with a motion-sensing function is a must-have. If you don’t have one yet, consider getting one.
If you do have one, then make sure to hard-wire the dash cam into your car. If the dash cam has the function but still hasn’t been hardwired, then the motion-sensing function won’t come into effect- it will still act just like a regular dash cam, instead.
If you’re not familiar with hardwiring, here’s a quick guide from us.
How does the motion-sensing function help? Consider that when you have your car in park, there is a possibility that people might come into contact with your vehicle.
There’s a chance that some might be carrying the virus and might even touch your vehicle. Knowing if someone came in contact with your vehicle is instrumental in keeping you safe.
Once the motion sensing function is enabled via hardwiring and once anyone comes close to your vehicle, the dash cam will start recording regardless if you have the key in the ignition or not; it just draws the power it needs directly from your car battery whenever it needs to.
When you do find that some people has been interacting with your vehicle, we’ve come up with a guide as to how you can sanitize your vehicle, and which are high touch surfaces that you need to be worried about- you can read up on it here.
Additional precautions
You and your car’s safety against the coronavirus is paramount- so make sure that you’re not relying only on footage from your distance.
Your dash cam is an important tool, that’s true; but it’s definitely not the end-all and be-all of your safety against the coronavirus. It provides information that you can use to protect yourself.
As a driver, make sure to follow these steps:
Stay safe out there!
