Dash Cam

Surfer, the wisest move is not to leave it in your vehicle just as you wouldn't any of your valuables. Placing it 'behind' your rear view mirror is creating problems for easy removal & checking its recording. Dashcams are great, they can also reduce your insurance 10/15%, but you need to use it every time you travel, if not you run the risk of invalidating your cover.

If it is not basically tucked behind the rear view mirror they start to become a challenge to be fitted where the law permits. Outside the critical zone they can only protrude 4 cm into the wiper swept zone; inside the more critical driver direct ahead zone, then only a centimetre intrusion is permitted.

I have been struggling to keep within the rules with units smaller than the Nextbase range, though in cars not a motorhome. What with that and not blinding a light sensor fitted in the mirror.

http://www.theroadtrafficlawyer.com/dash-cameras-improper-placement-can-put-risk/

Walking about car parks indicates the law with dashcams and the like of furry dice for that matter, is widely disregarded.

I agree  the law on this point seems widely abused and I don't doubt your observation on what the police do.

I am trying to keep within the law, not fully convinced if I or the wife find ourselves in court on some serious incident charge, any relevant evidence of hindered vision arising from an illegally mounted dashcam would be dismissed because a police car had a similar arrangement.

I suppose it will only be a matter of time before the law gets tested, just don't want to be involved.

It's not correct about fitting of dashcams and the 40mm within the wiper arc (zone of the windscreen. The most recent VOSA guidance (2/2014) to authorised inspectors (MOT testers) clarifies this, it states:

To clear up some confusion when considering ‘view to the front’, from receipt of this special notice you should consider the following before failing for damage or obstruction within the swept area of the windscreen.
From the driver’s seat, check the view of the road through the swept area of the windscreen. Only fail the vehicle if there is damage or an obstruction -
In zone A, greater than a 10mm diameter circle and which materially affects the driver’s view of the road.
In the remainder of the swept area, greater than a 40mm diameter circle and which materially affects the driver’s view of the road.

The key to this is ".....materially affects the driver's view of the road". I appreciate that again it's another judgement call by an official. As to the police prosecuting, yes I could see if the person had loads of stickers and things dangling e.g. furry dice they could be prosecuted or given a form under the Vehicle Defect Rectification Scheme. This prosecution would be under section 30 of The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, that the driver must have a clear view of the road and traffic ahead not under sections 2 and 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. So sticking a dash cam right in front of the driver is the problem!

huskydog, yes if in doubt remove it. But another bit of additional information is that if the MOT tester thinks that the dashcam, sat Nav, dangling smellie thing would be a fail the MOT manual (para 8.3) allows for them to remove it so long as they make it an advisory note. I think again people have to be careful at their sources of information when searching the Internet 

I have a nextbase and my insurance company gives me 10% discount but they doe say it can be used in evidence also they can see what speed you have been doing 

I have a Nextbase and whilst it has the facility to leave the holder on the screen and remove the camera unit, I can't understand the reason for doing it. Mine has a function where if the vehicle is knocked whilst parked then it starts recording. (may not get the actual incident but could be useful???)

So does mine and records without a permanent power supply (for 30 seconds off the internal battery) the Next base is a great piece of kit hence a Which best buy

Great, a 'Dashcam off' love it