OT: Dash Cam recommendations, What not to do after an accident! Options

[fiacra]

A recent accident on the freeway made me realize the value of a dashcam. Rearended at high speed traveling at the speed of surrounding traffic. Clearly the fault of the other driver, which he admitted on scene, but then later tried to claim that I had cut in front of him and slammed on my brakes. I had been in that lane for several miles at that time. Nobody stopped, so no witnesses, other than his passenger. Ultimately his insurance company took responsibility, but there were a few days where I had to consider that I might have to pay for both my damages and his, not to mention potential medical costs. Since I own a number of vintage cars I also have always owned a heavy duty pick up truck in case I need to tow one of them. It has come in handy a number of times, and fortunately this was one occasion when I was driving it. A former PG&E truck that I bought at their surplus auction, and it is set up for towing heavy equipment with a strong tow hitch and a super heavy duty bumper. Nonetheless the impact was strong enough to slightly buckle the bed of my truck. Thankfully still drivable and usable and I'll probably take a payout rather than fix it. A few lessons learned: always call the highway patrol and have them respond to write it up no matter how seemingly responsible the other driver is. Take pictures and record conversations on your cell phone (recording conversations in public places is allowed in California). The pictures I took helped convince the adjuster I was telling the truth but I didn't record our conversation. Get to a safe place to exchange information and try not to do it a foot or two away from highway speed traffic. I was in a rush to get to a safer place so I hurried up the process. With hindsight I would have handled this differently, so learn from my mistakes and by all means make other suggestions so everybody can benefit from my stupidity (IMG:style_emoticons/default/headbang.gif) . So, this has convinced me I need to put dashcams in all of my cars. I'm going to use any money I get for my damages to pay for them. Anybody out there have dashcams installed in their vehicles? Recommendations? Ones to avoid?

[Robarabian]

So I'll just chime in on the collision stuff.

I was a collision investigator for a PD in Cali, with 31 years total service under my belt. At the end of my Police career, I supervised the collision investigation unit at the rank of Commander.

1) Dash cameras are great. They help you establish you were where you say you were. They catch liars, just like a body worn one can keep the wearer honest.
2) Insurance companies like them and hate them. When you are at fault, they hate them. When you are not at fault, they love them. I have seen many people at fault with a dash camera try to lose the footage pretty quickly. If you spot a camera in their car and they try to hide it before the PD gets there, snap a photo of it to prove they had it and are hiding the footage. OF videotape them doing it and ask if they will share the footage with you. IF the PD responds, let them know. Although it is not a crime and therefore the Constitutional protections apply as far as searching the car goes to recover the hidden camera, it is good to document.
3) In CA, you have to be open and notorious about the AUDIO recording of any second party. It is a felony, even in a public place to SECRETLY record audio. There is a Penal Code exception for police officers to record without consent. Other states have different rules.
4) Find non-involved party witnesses.
5) The CHP and the local PD won't always respond. My agency was a smaller one, so we went to all of them, but are not required by law to document every collision. Some large agencies (LAPD specifically) enacted policies wherein they take NO REPORT unless there is an injury. Some agencies will assist you with an "information exchange" which is required by law by the involved parties. You are on your own to document and photograph the scene.
6) Take lots of photos... more than you think you need. Dont just shoot the bumpers of the car or the close up of the damage. Walk a football field away and snap photos. Capture the skidmarks. You would be surprised what a reconstruction expert can devise from a good photo set.
7) If you are injured, get a good PI lawyer. The insurance company is not your friend. It doesn't mean you're trying to milk anyone, it means you stand up for your rights. (Did I mention I am an attorney as well??.. I don't handle PI)

All good advice given at the start of the post... get out of danger first... "Scene safety" is everything. Then slow down and gather your thoughts.

Drive safe out there....