Webinar: Crash Data Retrieval for Law Enforcement

This video contains the following sections:

TIMECODES
0:00 - Intro
3:55 - Crash investigation methodology
5:55 - Overview of Event Data Recorders
11:21 - Applications for use of EDR data
24:21 - Privacy issues
25:35 - Methods to retrieve EDR data
29:33 - EDR retrieval tools
36:32 - Training Options
40:43 - Questions & Answers

Use of vehicle crash data is essential to today’s traffic accident investigations. This webinar is geared specifically for police traffic investigators that would like to learn more about event data recorders and the methods used to retrieve crash data. Vehicle crash data provides powerful evidence that can often answer questions about a crash that are otherwise unknown or a matter of dispute. We will discuss the types of data you can expect to find in most motor vehicles and provide real world examples of how you can use crash data to greatly enhance your traffic investigations. An overview of the available EDR data retrieval tools will be provided. We will also discuss training options that are available so you can get the most out of applying crash data to your investigations.

When investigating a car accident or insurance claim, no single piece of information can paint a complete picture of what occurred and who was at fault. Law enforcement officers and insurance professionals know this fact all too well.

First-hand and eyewitness accounts of the incident are notoriously unreliable. Environmental factors and road debris can change between the occurrence of the event and the on-scene investigation. Video of the incident – if it’s available -- may not capture key in-vehicle actions that influenced a crash.

As such, any comprehensive investigation requires a detailed analysis of the various human, vehicular, and environmental factors that may have influenced or caused the event. Within that universe of evidence, an unbiased and reliable source of information has emerged – and even grown more powerful as in-vehicle technology has advanced: The Event Data Recorder (EDR), which is integrated into nearly every car, light truck, and SUV sold in the U.S. since 2013. The EDR is a device that automatically records important technical information inside the vehicle in the seconds before, during, and after an accident or critical event.

Many consumers may be unaware that the EDR exists, as the EDR does not have an interface that displays the data it records inside the vehicle. Furthermore, the EDR only captures and stores data when certain events occur, such as when airbags are deployed or when sensor readings consistent with a collision trigger its recording function. Because there is no on-board interface to display EDR data, an external tool is required to download and present any data recorded by the EDR.

Since the first version of the CDR Tool became commercially available in 2000, it has been used routinely by law-enforcement and accident-reconstruction professionals. Over the past two decades, the Bosch CDR Tool has grown more powerful and more popular due to the massive increase in supported vehicles, the additional data elements recorded by EDRs, and the evolution of in-vehicle systems and sensors.

Insurance claims adjusters, SIUs, and law enforcement agencies use the Bosch CDR Tool in notably different ways – and they often use different hardware components of the tool to accommodate their unique investigative needs. However, there are several important rules and best practices that apply to both industries.