No dash cam footage recorded when accident occurs!

[kt2333]

I was involved in an accident two days ago while driving my Tesla. I had a USB drive plugged into the car and had cleared out old clips to ensure there was sufficient storage space before the accident happened. However, when the accident occurred, the dash cam failed to record the footage.

I have already requested a copy of the data from Tesla, but the documents they provided did not include the video footage. I am concerned that without this crucial evidence, the other driver's auto insurance company may deny liability for the damage to my car, even though I was not at fault.

Does anyone have a similar experience that could advise me on how to request the footage from Tesla, if they have it stored on their servers?

Many thanks!!!

 

[KenC]

The Prius hit you in the side. I think the damage makes it obvious what happened.

 

[kt2333]

The Prius hit you in the side. I think the damage makes it obvious what happened.

Yes;(( I already explained everything to their insurance company, but the driver gave a different side of the story. So the insurance company said they will investigate the case but most likely would deny the liability cost on their end. That's why I'm scared and wanted a footage to prove my perspective.

 

[stopcrazypp]

Yes;(( I already explained everything to their insurance company, but the driver gave a different side of the story. So the insurance company said they will investigate the case but most likely would deny the liability cost on their end. That's why I'm scared and wanted a footage to prove my perspective.

Did you safely remove the drive and review it on a computer? Have you ensured the drive actually was able to successfully record in the past? Was the red dot showing that it is active? How long did you wait until you try to get the footage (it only loops 1 hour in the Recent Clips folder)?

You can try a file recovery tool to see if the footage was deleted.
Dashcam in Auto

If you did any actions such as pressing the horn or pressing to save the footage, ironically that can sometimes cause it to fail to record footage. What that actually does is copy footage from the 1 hour loop from the Recent Clips to the Saved Clips folder, but sometimes that action trips up the software and it fails to record that exact crucial moment.

 

[jjrandorin]

I have already requested a copy of the data from Tesla, but the documents they provided did not include the video footage.

Does anyone have a similar experience that could advise me on how to request the footage from Tesla, if they have it stored on their servers?

If you already did the data request they would have sent you what they have. What they have is at the link below (and yes, there are multiple threads here with people complaining about "No data on USB with accident?!")

Obtain a Copy of the Data Associated With Your Tesla Account | Tesla Support

Obtain a copy of the vehicle data associated with your Tesla Account.

www.tesla.com

 

[kt2333]

Did you safely remove the drive and review it on a computer? Have you ensured the drive actually was able to successfully record in the past? Was the red dot showing that it is active? How long did you wait until you try to get the footage (it only loops 1 hour in the Recent Clips folder)?

You can try a file recovery tool to see if the footage was deleted.
Dashcam in Auto

If you did any actions such as pressing the horn or pressing to save the footage, ironically that can sometimes cause it to fail to record footage. What that actually does is copy footage from the 1 hour loop from the Recent Clips to the Saved Clips folder, but sometimes that action trips up the software and it fails to record that exact crucial moment.

Yes, I checked the footage after 10 minutes later of the accident, but it only shows the videos after the accident happened. So I am not sure if Tesla have the clip on their end.

I already tried two recovery tools but because the dash cam didn't record when it happens, I cannot do anything.

Unfortunately, I didn't know that I can honk/ press button to save clips until this incident happened.;(( I understand I should have honk or press the dash cam button, but I thought the dash cam will auto save itself as it mentioned.

Am I really hopeless to find the clip?

 

[jjrandorin]

Am I really hopeless to find the clip?

The best information this website has on attempting to recover the data is in the link to the thread that @stopcrazypp provided. If your expecting "I will just make Tesla give it to me", tesla doesnt have dashcam or sentry video from our cars.

 

[kt2333]

If you already did the data request they would have sent you what they have. What they have is at the link below (and yes, there are multiple threads here with people complaining about "No data on USB with accident?!")

Obtain a Copy of the Data Associated With Your Tesla Account | Tesla Support

Obtain a copy of the vehicle data associated with your Tesla Account.

www.tesla.com

So they would give me the dash cam footage if they have it? As all I received are some charts and pdfs.

 

[jjrandorin]

So they would give me the dash cam footage if they have it? As all I received are some charts and pdfs.

I provided that link so you could see what they say they have, and also what they say they dont have. At the tesla link, it says the following:

=====================================

About the Data Tesla Provides
When we collect data, we believe it’s important for you to know what we’re collecting and what it is used for. The data provided to you as part of your request may include information such as Tesla Account details, customer support activity, service history, and vehicle data. Tesla vehicles record operational and diagnostic data at regular intervals, and may transmit that data over-the-air to our servers. That data enables our Engineering and Service teams to assess vehicle health remotely and diagnose, and potentially proactively resolve your concerns.

	Processed directly on vehicle by default	Shared with Tesla, but not associated with your account	Shared with Tesla and associated with your account
Sentry Mode camera recordings	✓	N/A	N/A
Dashcam camera recordings	✓	N/A	N/A

=====================================

They dont have dashcam or sentry recordings.

 

[karkrazy]

Am I really hopeless to find the clip?

From the M3 owners manual -

To protect your privacy, video recordings are saved locally to a formatted USB flash drive's onboard memory. Recordings are not sent to Tesla. Model 3 does not record videos when Dashcam is Off.

 

[kt2333]

I provided that link so you could see what they say they have, and also what they say they dont have. At the tesla link, it says the following:

=====================================

About the Data Tesla Provides
When we collect data, we believe it’s important for you to know what we’re collecting and what it is used for. The data provided to you as part of your request may include information such as Tesla Account details, customer support activity, service history, and vehicle data. Tesla vehicles record operational and diagnostic data at regular intervals, and may transmit that data over-the-air to our servers. That data enables our Engineering and Service teams to assess vehicle health remotely and diagnose, and potentially proactively resolve your concerns.

	Processed directly on vehicle by default	Shared with Tesla, but not associated with your account	Shared with Tesla and associated with your account
Sentry Mode camera recordings	✓	N/A	N/A
Dashcam camera recordings	✓	N/A	N/A

=====================================

They dont have dashcam or sentry recordings.

Thanks for explaining to me!! I will keep finding through the recovery apps, see if I missed anything.

 

[kt2333]

From the M3 owners manual -

To protect your privacy, video recordings are saved locally to a formatted USB flash drive's onboard memory. Recordings are not sent to Tesla. Model 3 does not record videos when Dashcam is Off.

I never turned my dash cam off and it did record footages after the accident, so I just don't know why it didn't record at that moment when the accident occurs.

 

[stopcrazypp]

Yes, I checked the footage after 10 minutes later of the accident, but it only shows the videos after the accident happened. So I am not sure if Tesla have the clip on their end.

I already tried two recovery tools but because the dash cam didn't record when it happens, I cannot do anything.

Unfortunately, I didn't know that I can honk/ press button to save clips until this incident happened.;(( I understand I should have honk or press the dash cam button, but I thought the dash cam will auto save itself as it mentioned.

Am I really hopeless to find the clip?

Were there any clips from prior to the accident in your recentclips folder?

Dashcam does a one hour loop, so as long as you safely remove the drive (press and hold icon to pause recording before removing) before that one hour has passed, the footage will be in the RecentClips folder.

Pressing the horn or icon to "save" the clip only copies 10 minutes of footage from that folder to the SavedClips folder, but that isn't really necessary if you remove the drive as mentioned above. As mentioned, sometimes using the horn or pressing the icon to save the clip actually makes it fail to record.

Model 3 Owner's Manual | Tesla

Learn about the features you can use to record videos when driving.

www.tesla.com

 

[kt2333]

Were there any clips from prior to the accident in your recentclips folder?

No, it only has the clips after the accident happened.

 

[stopcrazypp]

No, it only has the clips after the accident happened.

There is a possibility your dashcam wasn't on in the first place (red dot indicating it is recording) and your action of reviewing the footage is what turned it on later. I personally keep the icon docked on my menu bar so I can easily see when it is off.

The other possibility is you didn't pull your drive prior to 1 hour after the accident and it was overwritten. Plugging in the drive into the car will also have the car delete any footage that is older than an hour ago. In such a case, file recovery software can sometimes retrieve it (presuming your drive had enough free space to not have the loop overwrite). I personally keep a spare drive in the car so that if there is any footage I am interested in, I can pull it and swap in that drive until I can copy everything out on a computer.

 

[kt2333]

There is a possibility your dashcam wasn't on in the first place (red dot indicating it is recording) and your action of reviewing the footage is what turned it on later. I personally keep the icon docked on my menu bar so I can easily see when it is off.

The other possibility is you didn't pull your drive prior to 1 hour after the accident and it was overwritten. Plugging in the drive into the car will also have the car delete any footage that is older than an hour ago. In such a case, file recovery software can sometimes retrieve it (presuming your drive had enough free space to not have the loop overwrite). I personally keep a spare drive in the car so that if there is any footage I am interested in, I can pull it and swap in that drive until I can copy everything out on a computer.

Right.. Thanks for explaining!

 

[KenC]

Yes;(( I already explained everything to their insurance company, but the driver gave a different side of the story. So the insurance company said they will investigate the case but most likely would deny the liability cost on their end. That's why I'm scared and wanted a footage to prove my perspective.

Uhm, you should be talking to YOUR insurance company, not the other driver's. Your insurance will deal with the other one.

The other driver can say whatever they like, but the story has to fit the evidence. The basic evidence is he has damage to the front of his Prius. You have damage on the side of your car. Since you can't hit people with the side of your car, as your rear wheels don't turn, then it becomes obvious the Prius hit you. End of story.

 

[afadeev]

I was involved in an accident two days ago while driving my Tesla. I had a USB drive plugged into the car and had cleared out old clips to ensure there was sufficient storage space before the accident happened. However, when the accident occurred, the dash cam failed to record the footage.

You got hit on a side. The sequence of events that produce that outcome is very limited, and very self-evident. No dash came required to figure that out.

I am concerned that without this crucial evidence, the other driver's auto insurance company may deny liability for the damage to my car, even though I was not at fault.

Stop freaking out!

Yes;(( I already explained everything to their insurance company,

Why are you talking to the other driver's insurance company?
You should have filed a claim with YOUR insurance company, and let them advocate on your behalf. The incentives to assign blame to the other party are perfectly aligned with YOUR insurance company, and that is the part you want advocating on your behalf.

but the driver gave a different side of the story. So the insurance company said they will investigate the case

All of the above is normal, and expected. Any insurance company will start with an investigation.

but most likely would deny the liability cost on their end.

Did they really say that? (I seriously doubt it!)
Or are you freaking out and jumping to panicked conclusions?

Unless you blew a stop sign / red light, the fault is obvious from the damage incurred.
Insurance companies and police have deciphered root cause of road accidents for a century + without silly dash cams.
Relax, and use YOUR insurance company to YOUR advantage. That is precisely what you have been paying them to do all those years!

a

 

[jay1122]

Uhm, you should be talking to YOUR insurance company, not the other driver's. Your insurance will deal with the other one.

The other driver can say whatever they like, but the story has to fit the evidence. The basic evidence is he has damage to the front of his Prius. You have damage on the side of your car. Since you can't hit people with the side of your car, as your rear wheels don't turn, then it becomes obvious the Prius hit you. End of story.

Nah it depends. Even though I don't have picture of the scene. A side and front hit like that usually happens in intersections when cars travel in perpendicular. The front of the Toyota hits the side door of the tesla. It all depends on who has the right of way. The toyota driver could argue the tesla came into the intersection without stopping while he was passing through the intersection and thus hitting the side door. Without hard video, it will be he said she said. It all depends on the adjuster's investigation and who has the right of way. Honestly, I think someone blew a stop sign. If I could look at the intersection, I would probably get a better idea. Sometimes, the adjust may just end up settling with the other side with shared fault.

 

[jay1122]

You got hit on a side. The sequence of events that produce that outcome is very limited, and very self-evident. No dash came required to figure that out.



Stop freaking out!



Why are you talking to the other driver's insurance company?
You should have filed a claim with YOUR insurance company, and let them advocate on your behalf. The incentives to assign blame to the other party are perfectly aligned with YOUR insurance company, and that is the part you want advocating on your behalf.



All of the above is normal, and expected. Any insurance company will start with an investigation.



Did they really say that? (I seriously doubt it!)
Or are you freaking out and jumping to panicked conclusions?

Unless you blew a stop sign / red light, the fault is obvious from the damage incurred.
Insurance companies and police have deciphered root cause of road accidents for a century + without silly dash cams.
Relax, and use YOUR insurance company to YOUR advantage. That is precisely what you have been paying them to do all those years!

a

If OP does not have a solid video, he may be in for a fight. It is all about luck. My family member had an accident where the other side was clearly at fault and lies through the teeth about what happened. Their small insurance firm just deny and fight. My insurance is the big Allstate, the young adjuster just wants to quickly close the small claim, even offered other side 80/20 split. They still did not take and wants to fight it. We obtained footage from the nearby Dunkin donut, showed to the other side, still not admitting fault. Ended up doing arbitration and won. After that, I have dash cam in every one of my car. A solid video beats bullshit argument any day. Especially when it goes into arbitration.