All new cars must have 'black box' spying device fitted from next year

[Gambit]

EU regulations say all new cars must have built in spy box from October next year which will track speed and driving habits

 

 

Motorists will be forced to have spy in the car technology which will track their speeds and other driving habits or face sky high insurance premiums.

The devices, similar to the black boxes on aeroplanes , will be fitted as standard on all new cars under EU regulations from October next year.

The so-called “telematics” technology will enable insurers to keep track of how fast their customers drive, how hard they brake and how many journeys a year they undertake.

If they refuse to take part, drivers will face huge increases in their annual insurance premiums.

Research by the industry predicts that about half of all cars - including used vehicles - will be fitted with the spying devices by 2020,

Andy Watson, chief insurer of the Ageas Group, said: “The ability to have telematics will become mainstream because the technology will be in the car. It means the amount of data available to insurers increases dramatically.”

Tom Ellis, of the comparison website Gocompare, said: “In ten years time there will still be customers who prefer not to have a telematics device installed but it will be an opt out situation rather than an opt in.

“There will be reasons for people opting out - perhaps because they are bad drivers, or unhappy with the privacy element or have an old car but they will have to accept a higher premium to insure their car.”

The device was originally invented to help the emergency services track down crashed vehicles.

Pete Williams, of the RAC, said that motoring organisations felt that the introduction of the devices was inevitable.

He added: “We are working with the industry to make sure control of such data is retained by the individual motorist but for the vast majority of motorists it will be a good thing with regard to things like safety and vehicle recovery.”

The Department of Transport commissioned research into telematics earlier this year and a spokesman said: “The research will help us build a better understanding of how it can influence driver behaviour.

“We want to see how effective it can be in improving driver behaviour and reducing accident risk.”

 

 

 

This is disgusting and I think everyone who buys a new car should refuse this !Removed!. EU can get stuffed this is balls. I will move to Scotland if they get independance :)

This for me is to much what next spy cameras in my house ?

[Scooby Pete]

Big brother is watching.

[Dogconker]

i can see anyone who drives a car voting UKIP if this is coming.

 

hardly fair that those that drive legally and often in new cars have this but those who are uninsured or illegal will drive older cars that don't have it

 

also how much does this crap cost to put in the car and will I have to pay for it, might actually be cheaper to pay the extra premiums than to pay £2k extra on a car for this stuff to be in it

[tom_gr7]

Ffs, more !Removed! coming from the eu. Not a chance id agree to having that gear in any of my cars!

[Gambit]

I like how they use the words risk and safety like it's to save lives Yeah come on the speed cameras use that slogan too. It's all about the ££££'s

[Gaulson]

I already thought it was the law to have cameras in your house? At least that's what they told me... :P

[Dogconker]

Was that the man with the thick rim glasses and a long brown mac that told you that?

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[Gaulson]

Yeah as a matter of fact it was! ;)

[tom_gr7]

I bet alot of people will stop buying new cars then.

 

In any case, when i was in the army doing signals, GPS and satellite stuff, we were told that civilian GPS devices/satellites are only accurate to only about 100m (at best) and cannot accurately determine the speed of the vehicle. So the speed that your GPS says you are doing, is very likely to be inaccurate.

[stants]

If I enjoy a spirited drive now and then on unpopulated roads at times when it's not busy and dont kill myself or drive though a hedge will my premium still go up because I've broken the law or my drivings been seen as erratic ?

Will the plod be able to pull data and issue tickets in retrospect ?

What happens if there's a major accident and you may have seen something in the build up. Ie !Removed! driving . Will they look at who else was on the road before the incident and try and contact you for a witness statment ?

All balls if you ask me !

[Dogconker]

Technically the data that these boxes hold is your data, there would need to be a change in legislation or you'd have to authorise its use by any party. So in theory the insurance company could only use it for what it was intended. The police would need to obtain it through legal channels or upon your request. Data protection would prevent this info being used for the purposes you described. At Least that's how I understand the law to sit now.

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[Dogconker]

I've looked at this s bit more and it looks like its a little bit of scaremongering. The device sends a text if you have an accident stating the cars location. The system isn't in constant transmission so it won't continuously update your location or speed unless they interfere with its operation to make it do so, which at present would conflict with UK data protection law. Not that it's impossible to continuously track with this system, it's just not set up that way as standard

The eCall devices will be fitted to all new cars from October 2015, this is like the system in Mercedes where it automatically calls emergency services if the airbags deploy or you press the emergency button on the dash. Only then does it use the info it has to send the cars location.

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[stants]

Thats a bit better then, gambit been reasing the daily mail again '? :-D

[Dogconker]

Yep, the daily mail is kicking off becuase you could in theory use the system to send regular data if it was used wrongly. insurance premiums aren't affected by the eCall system.

If you want to avoid the full Tracker system that is rumoured in several years time you need to be out of Europe.

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[Gambit]

I've looked at this s bit more and it looks like its a little bit of scaremongering. The device sends a text if you have an accident stating the cars location. The system isn't in constant transmission so it won't continuously update your location or speed unless they interfere with its operation to make it do so, which at present would conflict with UK data protection law. Not that it's impossible to continuously track with this system, it's just not set up that way as standard

The eCall devices will be fitted to all new cars from October 2015, this is like the system in Mercedes where it automatically calls emergency services if the airbags deploy or you press the emergency button on the dash. Only then does it use the info it has to send the cars location.

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Thats out in most modern cars now Dog not just Mercs I know a friends Ford fiesta that has that. The article is to watch how you drive, how the info is used I don't know. But I know my next door neighbour had one in her car through her insurance company and she would get a text if she was doing 5mph over the speed limit I know she said she would get like a fine from them if she racked up too many warnings and have to pay extra on the next months bill. they also knew when she was out in it and at what times. And again if she went over her set miles for the year that would be another fine. So my guess is it will be run like that 

[Ash007ks]

lets face it, people will whinge when it firsts comes out and then they will all be brainwashed into thinking its a good idea, they will exploit people by offering super low insurance to reel people in and the rest of us will be outcast and branded bad drivers for not taking it.

 

Same happened when fuel hit the quid mark, now nobody cares.

[Dogconker]

I know, the full black box systems aren't anticipated for another 5 years or so. It's the eCall system that is the concern at the minute

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[Dogconker]

Easy solution is put a piece of aluminium foil or fine mesh over the gps sensor and you've vanished of radar. My mate does this with his works van when he wants to pick things up at the weekend even thought it's not allowed to be driven at weekends [emoji2]

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[Gambit]

I know she moved insurance because she said it was doing her head in as she works driving around looking after old people in their homes. 

To be fair not that I can see myself buying a brand spanker anytime soon. But I'd be likely to smash it with a hammer and send it to them signed for :D

[stants]

Easy solution is put a piece of aluminium foil or fine mesh over the gps sensor and you've vanished of radar. My mate does this with his works van when he wants to pick things up at the weekend even thought it's not allowed to be driven at weekends [emoji2]

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:-D

Luckily I'm not on a Tracker with mine (yet) can always pull the fuse before you go out ifit's parked undercover too : O

[Dogconker]

I imagine the new system will know if the fuss is pulled rather than gps signal lost

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[Gambit]

I will see how this goes I mean it was only last year the EU was trying to force through a decision that if you had any parts that was of non OEM it would fail an MOT and be non roadworthy until it was all replaced with OEM parts. Only thing that does worry me this is the sort of crap our Government would go for as it's easy money. And I can see the insurance companies liking the idea of easy money too. 

 

 

The article about modified cars 

EU rules could mean modified cars could fail MOT. Even for tow bar and Stereo upgrades
Cars with any kind of modification could fail an MoT if new EU rules get the green light from member states, a motoring group is warning.

The Association of Car Enthusiasts (ACE) says even aftermarket wheels or stereos would bring a fail, and mean cars would have to undergo costly, time-consuming vehicle approval testing before they could be considered roadworthy.

It’s all down to an EU proposal to change the definition of the roadworthiness test so that “components of the vehicle must comply with characteristics at the time of first registration” – effectively outlawing any deviation from factory spec. ACE’s Barry Cornes told Auto Express that under the current wording, “potentially something as minor as changing the Stereo could result in an MoT failure”.

AA technical specialist Vanessa Guyll said: “The AA is very worried about this. It seems completely over the top.” She warned that the regulations would be too draconian even if watered down to include only parts that affect performance, safety or emissions.

Owners would need to buy expensive original parts – even for older cars. And models made by defunct brands, where original parts are no longer available, would have to go through vehicle approval testing after any repair.

Barry Cornes of the Association of Car Enthusiasts told us: “If this proposal becomes law in its current wording, then every car would have to stay as it was when it left the factory.”

Cornes fears this will affect all car owners – not only those who go in for extensive modifications. “Unless parts of the ruling are relaxed, any change will make a car non-standard,” he added.

“Even tow bars may be failures. If it’s not factory-fitted or approved, you’d be forced to go for individual vehicle approval tests with the car.”

[Dogconker]

Vote UKIP, no Europe, no problem [emoji12]

Just kidding

[stants]

Haha and have some silly old knobber

[tom_gr7]

Vote UKIP, no Europe, no problem [emoji12]

Just kidding

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As much as I hate the EU, I'd never vote ukip - they are just the same as the torries. In fact i think many are ex Torries.

 

One fear I have is a coalition made up of the torries and ukip - imagine how bad that would be? You know for a fact, ukip would jump straight into bed with the torries to get their hands on some power!

 

I don't think any political party deserves my vote tbh, they are all a waste of space and only care about their own interests and their financial backers interests. Not in the interests of the normal working people.