Make it easier to report bad driving in Scotland
To make it easier to report “bad drivers”, a company called Nextbase developed the National Dash Cam Safety Portal (NDCSP). The idea behind the portal was that it would be a universal means of submitting video directly to the police, who would then investigate – and, if appropriate, take whatever action was necessary against the offending driver.
Virtually every police force in England and Wales uses the portal, which claims to provide benefits such as saving an estimated 25 years of police time, being a one-stop-shop for evidence gathering, highlighting dangerous driving and targeting the worst incidents through the use of footage in safety campaigns.
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Hide AdHowever, Scottish road users are unable to use this portal to submit footage because Police Scotland has not signed up to the scheme. However, there were plans to do so. In 2022, Police Scotland was given a grant from Transport Scotland to assist with the implementation of a standalone dashcam portal. However, nothing ever came of the project. The official line from Police Scotland is that resources and funding within the force have changed significantly, and impacted numerous areas of policing, including the dashcam portal project. But, there might be another reason at play.


The launch of the Nextbase portal in 2018 led to an avalanche in reports of dangerous driving to police forces signed up to the scheme. In 2023, 33,531 videos were submitted to the portal, a 30 per cent increase from previous years. In 2024, the number was expected to increase again by 31 per cent. The reason for the increase in submissions is due to both a rise in the number of people using a dashcam, but also the ease by which road users can report dangerous driving. That increase does, undoubtedly, put pressure on police forces receiving these submissions. Footage must be reviewed, analysed and further investigations carried out if a conviction against an offending motorist is to be successful. That involves a lot of work and resources.
If you’re a pessimist, you could believe a police force which doesn’t introduce a national dashcam portal because of lack of budget might be worried that, even if it did manage to get a portal up and running, the resultant increase in reports of road crime would be too much to cope with. In my view, Police Scotland doesn’t want to make it easier for people to report crime, it wants to make it harder, and that’s why we don’t have a national dashcam portal in Scotland.
In November 2024, HMICS (His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland) reported on the thematic inspection of road policing in Scotland. One of the recommendations was: “Police Scotland should progress the facility for members of the public to report road traffic offences by directly uploading journey-cam footage.”
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Hide AdThe absence of a portal in Scotland is a missed chance to improve road safety. While Police Scotland cites funding issues, growing dashcam use and HMICS recommendations highlight the need for action. It’s time to prioritise public safety and make reporting dangerous driving easier.
Thomas Mitchell is a Partner, RTA LAW LLP
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