Do Car Insurance Companies Offer Discounts for Dash Cams?

Insurers generally don’t offer a dash cam insurance discount, but these devices can indirectly help you save money and potentially prevent insurance rate increases. These cameras, mounted to your car’s dashboard or windshield, record video evidence of what’s happening around your vehicle — such as potential accidents and other incidents — that can help prove your innocence if you’re not at fault for a collision.

Keep reading to learn more about the benefits of dash cams, how they work and ways they can help you save money.

On This Page

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  Does Having a Dash Cam Affect Car Insurance?

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  Which Car Insurance Companies Offer Dash Cam Discounts?

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  What Do Dash Cams Record?

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  What Are the Benefits of a Dash Cam?

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  How Much Does a Dash Cam Cost?

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  When Are Dash Cams Worth It?

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  FAQs

Does Having a Dash Cam Affect Car Insurance?

Dash cams can indirectly affect car insurance rates by helping prevent or reduce insurance hikes after you file a claim. Even if you were not responsible for causing a collision, your insurer will typically increase your premium when you renew your policy. However, the rate hike will be higher if you were the at-fault driver.

Having video evidence proving the other driver was at fault can help keep your rate as affordable as possible if your insurer decides to raise it.

Do I Have To Tell Insurance About a Dash Cam in My Car?

Owning a dash cam is optional and doesn’t require you to inform your insurance company. You may choose to tell your insurer that you have a dash cam with relevant footage of an incident involving a claim, but that decision is up to you. Remember that dash cam footage provides an unbiased view of an accident, so if the video shows that you may have been driving recklessly or could be at fault for a collision, it may not help your case.

Which Car Insurance Companies Offer Dash Cam Discounts?

No major U.S. insurance companies currently offer direct discounts for owning a dash cam.^[1] While there is no immediate benefit from your carrier, recorded video of an accident is often welcomed by your insurer to help verify a claim and maintain a clean driving record — which may result in other discounts from your insurer. For example, in a no-fault accident, dash cam footage can provide evidence showing the other driver was at fault, helping you potentially keep or later qualify for a good driver discount, if your insurer offers one.

What Do Dash Cams Record?

Dash cams commonly record footage of the road in front of your vehicle and, in some models, inside your vehicle. Some may also record audio and the time of day the footage is recorded. They may also include GPS tracking, marking your location through an app or directly embedded in the footage.

Some dash cams are powered by a cigarette lighter or USB plug-in, while others may be hardwired directly into your car. Most begin recording when they receive power from your car and continue recording until their memory is full, then stop or overwrite old footage. Other devices offer live feeds, letting you see what the camera sees through an app even when you’re not there.

If your dash cam features parked mode, it will begin recording if it senses any movement or impact to your car while parked — such as if someone tries to break in or commits a hit-and-run. Some models also allow you to place a rear dash cam to record what’s happening behind your vehicle, capturing events like rear-end collisions or fender benders.

When Do Insurance Companies Request Camera Footage?

Your car insurance company won’t typically request camera footage, but you can provide it when filing a claim. Insurers regularly rely on video evidence, such as surveillance footage, to help verify the accuracy of a claim, and offering dash cam footage can help resolve disputes or clarify details after an accident.

What Are the Benefits of a Dash Cam?

Dash cams offer several benefits to drivers by recording video footage of events they may have missed. Depending on your circumstances, this “second pair of eyes” can help prove what happened after an accident, resolve disputes between drivers or even reveal mistakes you may not have realized you made while driving.

Here are just a few examples of the benefits of a dash cam:

Provides Evidence

Video captured by a dash cam is unbiased, so in a situation where you’re not at fault — but the other driver insists you are — a dash cam can show what actually happened. If the footage supports that you weren’t at fault, you may use it to file an insurance claim. Beyond collisions, dash cam footage can provide evidence of theft, vandalism or other perils covered by your comprehensive coverage to help prove your claim.

Combats Insurance Fraud

Dash cams can help protect you from insurance fraud if another driver tries to involve you in a staged accident. For example, a driver may cause a collision by making a sudden or unnecessary stop, then fraudulently file a claim against your insurance for damages or injuries. Dash cam footage can expose these staged accidents and may help you dispute fraudulent claims or lawsuits.

Helps Improve Your Driving Skills

It can be difficult to evaluate your driving habits in the moment, but by reviewing your dash cam footage, you may notice mistakes or risky behaviors you didn’t realize you made while driving. While this may not provide a direct financial benefit, improving your driving skills and avoiding errors could help you qualify for good driver discounts with your insurer.

Monitors Other Drivers

If you’re a parent of a new driver, having a dash cam to monitor their driving habits can help ensure they aren’t making novice mistakes or driving recklessly when you’re not there to guide them. Keeping teens safe behind the wheel is critical, as motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of teen deaths.^[2] Encouraging good driving habits can help prevent serious crashes or injuries and help your child become a safer, more confident driver.

Additionally, if you share a car or plan to loan it to a friend, a dash cam can help you monitor other drivers’ behavior and may provide valuable evidence if they’re involved in an accident you didn’t witness.

How Much Does a Dash Cam Cost?

Dash cams vary in price depending on their features, with basic models generally starting at around $50 and advanced options potentially exceeding $500.^[3] Some record at lower quality due to camera limitations or to save storage space, while higher-quality cameras typically cost more. The camera’s range and optional features, such as night vision, can also affect price.

Storage is another factor that influences cost, as most dash cams have limited internal memory and rely on microSD cards to save footage. This setup can automatically overwrite older recordings, potentially deleting important video. You may need to buy additional storage cards or manually delete unnecessary footage before the card fills up.

Some models allow you to upload video footage to the cloud, which simplifies storage management but may require a subscription or additional fee.

Many dash cams include safety features, such as GPS tracking, emergency alerts or radar detection, which can raise the price. For example, some Garmin dash cams alert drivers when they begin drifting into another lane, while certain Nextbase models automatically contact emergency services if the device detects a serious crash.^[4][5]

When Are Dash Cams Worth It?

Dash cams can be worth the investment, depending on your needs. While a dash cam doesn’t provide a direct discount on your insurance premium, the footage it captures could help you resolve disputes or support a successful claim — potentially saving you more than the cost of the device. Additional features, such as safety alerts or GPS tracking, may also make a dash cam worth the expense.