Motor vehicle black box – who owns the data?

In this second part of our 2-part blog, we discuss issues related to ownership of a motor vehicle’s black box data.  Imagine this scenario . . . you are involved in a motor vehicle accident, wherein liability (i.e. who is at fault) is disputed.  You take your vehicle to a mechanic shop and your insurance company contacts the shop and asks that they download the data from your vehicle’s black box.  The insurance company explains to the repair shop that it needs the data to determine who was at fault in the accident.  But wait . . . you have not given consent to this.  In fact, you have not even been informed that your insurance company requested the data.

Like the laws revolving around other types of modern technology, laws related to ownership of a vehicle’s black box data is still evolving in the US.  At least 15 states have enacted laws that regulate who can download such data with and without the vehicle owners’ permission.  Some states limit access to such data to owner consent, while others allow for access for purposes of vehicle safety research, vehicle repair, and other similar circumstances.  Florida, however, has yet to enact any such laws regulating the ownership and downloading of such data.  Without such regulation in Florida, it is unclear as to whether the insurance company and the repair shop will have broken any laws if your black box data is downloaded without your permission.  Eventually, the Florida Legislature will have to deal with the issue and make a decision as to the ownership and accessibility of vehicle black box data.

These issues, along with other issues related to black box data such as their effect on litigation, will be discussed live on Rights & Repairs, Monday, November 14, 2016, from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., on Moneytalk 1010 with Legal Expert, Gregory J. Perenich of PERENICH the Law Firm, and Auto Expert, Dan Cooley of Collisiontec.  Greg and Dan will feature special guest, Bryan Ballew of Mobile Diagnostics and Programming, LLC, who is an expert in the area of “black box” / event data recording (EDR).  Listen to Greg, Dan, and Bryan live and call 1-888-404-1010 with your comments and questions.

If you have been injured in an automobile accident and/or you are having issues dealing with your insurance company in relation to an automobile accident, then call us at (727) 669-2828 or 1-877-FLA-FIRM and let us help you.  Our attorneys have extensive experience in establishing liability through the use of black box data and can help you.