Expert in Vehicle Black Box Technology Opines on Car Crash Data

Case Overview

This case involves a man who was driving a late model sedan while travelling down the highway during his morning commute. As he was passing an intersection with another major highway, a driver in another vehicle drove through a red light and struck him. The man’s black box indicates that she was traveling faster than the speed limit, and that he was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident. The Defendant’s black box indicates that he did not stop at the stop sign. The Plaintiff claims that he was driving under the speed limit at the time of the accident, which was corroborated by other drivers who witnessed the accident. The Plaintiff also claims that he was wearing his seat belt when the crash happened. He claimed that he was unbuckled by emergency personnel after the accident. It was alleged that the black box in the Plaintiff’s vehicle was somehow defective.

Questions to the Automotive expert and their responses

Are you familiar with the type of black box systems in these vehicles?

There are several potential reasons for inaccurate data to be recorded. Some of the sensing diagnostic modules (SDM) also known as an Airbag Control Module (ACM) for these vehicles do not provide pre-crash data.

Please explain why you are qualified to review this case.

If the readout of the subject 'Black Box' does not provide pre-crash data, but only the Speed at Impact data, I believe that I can explain why a higher speed than the actual speed involved could be shown. If there is pre-crash data and it places the speed of the vehicle above the speed limit, that will be more difficult to explain. The safety belt issue may be a bit more easily explained if, during the collision, battery power was lost due to the collision.

Have you ever been sued or arrested?

The safety belt information is the last item recorded by the 'Black Box' and if power is lost, it goes with the default reading of un-belted.

About the expert

This expert has been consulting on motor vehicle accidents, full time, for over 30 years. He has analyzed over 3000 motor vehicle accidents, performing some level of reconstruction on well over 2000 of these incidents. He is also an automotive event data recorder (EDR) download specialist and instructor, including full analysis of all supported motor vehicle EDRs. He is a consultant to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office. Richard's experience involves working with Prosecutors and Defense Attorneys in criminal cases, and Attorneys in civil lawsuits throughout the United States, extending to accidents in Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.