Helmet cams...Ever made a difference..?

john1967

Now that cyclists are public enemy no1 and fair game for every lunatic on the road and cycle path,I am considering getting a helmet cam.Is it worth it?Does anyone care if their on camera when they try to kill,mame you?
What's your experience,has one ever made a difference in your favour or have they just agitated a situation.

cougie

Much better to avoid the situation in the first place.

It looks almost like some camera users want confrontation.

ben@31

I did wonder the same thing...

If you had a helmet cam and went to the Police, would the Police even be interested in taking action against the motorist that you thought cut you up?

john1967

yep agreed about avoiding situations but this is really more about my partner who being a woman cyclist has to endure far more aggression and abuse than I ever will.I do worry about her comute run and was wondering if cams help calm or avoid situations.Im certainly not looking to become a utube cycle warrior.

sloppyschleckonds

cougie wrote:

Much better to avoid the situation in the first place.

This

From what I've seen there are some who go out looking for things to get angry about

frisbee

cougie wrote:

Much better to avoid the situation in the first place.

It looks almost like some camera users want confrontation.

But I can't afford a helicopter...

Mikey23

I dont know your partner, perhaps you should ask her?

hstiles

My opinion is that helmet cameras do not influence a change in behaviour in motorists, so they do not make you any safer. They provide an opportunity for you to record your experiences, but you are reliant on the police using it as evidence to pursue criminal action or to support your own civil action.

They clearly provide some people with peace of mind and, unfortunately, other people with fuel to go looking for conflict situations.

I chose to spend my money on decent lights and clothing.

patrickf

It's not just useful for police cases. Camera footage can be used in civil and insurance claims as proof. Essentially if you get knocked off the driver can no longer claim it wasn't their fault (assuming it was of course).

That's the only reason I wear one on my commute.

MountainMonster

ben@31 wrote:

I did wonder the same thing...

If you had a helmet cam and went to the Police, would the Police even be interested in taking action against the motorist that you thought cut you up?

They wouldn't be interested in taking action against someone who cut you up, because A: it is not illegal and B: it is not a huge problem.

It can be very good having a camera for reference in a case. I was speaking to a guy at the building I work in who was very aggressively attacked by a white van man a few months ago. The driver was adamant that this guy was all over the road, and was following too closely. The video showed the cyclist going in the cycle lane, with the van speeding up and slowing down hurling abuse at him before he pulled into the cycle lane, slammed on his brakes and cause the cyclist to crash. This was the only evidence of the entire encounter.

chris_bass

john1967 wrote:

who being a woman cyclist has to endure far more aggression and abuse than I ever will

Is that true? In my experience people are much more likely to be aggressive towards men than women.

cruff

Chris Bass wrote:

john1967 wrote:

who being a woman cyclist has to endure far more aggression and abuse than I ever will

Is that true? In my experience people are much more likely to be aggressive towards men than women.

Agree with this. I've seen (and been on the receiving end) of White Van Man/Black Cab/Jihaddison Lee abuse regularly. I don't think I've ever seen a driver abusing a cyclist they knew to be female

drummer_boy

My wife, and her (female) friend get a lot of abuse on the road, on their own, and a lot from other women.

It drops right off when I'm with them, and also when she wears her helmet cam.

Not empirical proof, but good anecdotal!!

cougie

Bizarre. Most drivers wouldn't recognise a camera I'd have thought. Maybe just get a gilet printed with "cameras on board" and save the cost of a camera.

diy

I think a covert camera is probably better - less likely that they will chase you down for the footage. HD Spycameraa are about £25-£40 and can be attached with a velcro sticky pad.. They are also a fraction of the weight of a go pro or similar. They can still be set to auto recycle and you can buy gopro style waterproof housings too.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/eletech086/HD- ... 2186673016

The jumbo one can go about 2 hours on full charge but you can stick in any mini usb power source easily.

dennisn

john1967 wrote:

Now that cyclists are public enemy no1 and fair game for every lunatic on the road and cycle path,I am considering getting a helmet cam.Is it worth it?Does anyone care if their on camera when they try to kill,mame you?
What's your experience,has one ever made a difference in your favour or have they just agitated a situation.

In the first place no one is out there "trying" to kill you. If I were out there in a car, truck, whatever and "trying" to kill you, you'd be dead. How hard can it be to run over a cyclist if you're "trying" to? Now, people may be out there "trying" to scare you or p*ss you off but to what end is someone "trying" to kill you. And are they that inept that they can't succeed at running over a cyclist? :roll:

cougie

Good point.

I only meet a d*ckhead motorist ever so often and nobodys ever seriously tried to kill me.

And what is your wife doing to attract aggression ? Half the time when I'm cycling I cant tell if its a woman in front of me until I pass her - so motorists must have great eyesight round your way ?

Any women posters care to comment - do you get more aggression than male riders ?

slowbike

cougie wrote:

Good point.

I only meet a d*ckhead motorist ever so often and nobodys ever seriously tried to kill me.

The majority of the time there is not a lot of point of a camera on my commute, just occasionally you do get an idiot who thinks they can scare you by passing too close or driving aggressively - they're not trying to kill you, but are more likely to do so than most of the drivers out there.

cougie wrote:

Half the time when I'm cycling I cant tell if its a woman in front of me until I pass her - so motorists must have great eyesight round your way ?

I can usually tell male/female cyclists apart - but I thought that drivers (around here anyway) were more sympathetic to female riders ... I was thinking of getting a clip-on pony tail ...

cougie

Thats true - didnt a Uni professor show this in his studies - wearing a blonde girly wig made motorists pass him at a greater distance. Which confuses me as it goes against the aggro as reported in this thread ?

Stevo C

cougie wrote:

Much better to avoid the situation in the first place.

It looks almost like some camera users want confrontation.

That was how I used to feel, until an Addisson Lee cab did a u-turn in front of me 4 weeks ago. Amazingly, despite being in inner London at 8pm, there was only one witness and he only saw what happened from just before me hitting the car - he didn't see what the driver did beforehand, so without any further evidence, I'm not sure how my insurance claim will pan out.

I bought a Garmin Virb (reduced in Amazon's recent lightning deal) to trial (it was reduced enough for me to be confident that can recoup my outlay by selling it, if I decide not to continue with it). I don't intend it to be a deterrent but merely to record my commute - so far I'm impressed with what it captures both day & night