Dash cams for construction: How to reduce accidents and enhance safety

Construction fleets face unique safety risks due to the presence of heavy equipment, heavy-duty vehicles, and dynamic job sites. The potential for collisions, property damage, and worker injuries makes the construction industry prone to especially dangerous working environments, and accidents can lead to significant financial and legal challenges for construction companies.

As the construction industry seeks to prioritize safety and mitigate these risks, dash cams are emerging as a critical technology for improving safety and reducing accidents. In this guide, we’ll explore how dash cams work, their benefits for construction fleets, and how Samsara’s AI Dash Cam solution can help your organization enhance safety, reduce liability, and optimize overall fleet performance.

The importance of safety in the construction industry

The construction industry is one of the most dangerous industries with fleet operations, consistently leading in workplace fatalities. In fact, the construction industry has the most fatal injuries, with 1 in 5 fatal injuries reported occurring in construction sites. 

Since construction environments often deal with heavy machinery, large commercial vehicles, and constantly changing job site conditions, the risk of accidents is significantly higher than in other industries. Common hazards like vehicle collisions, equipment misuse, and poor visibility can result in serious injuries, costly downtime, and major property damage.

To address these risks, innovative construction companies are turning to advanced safety technology, and dash cams are one of the most effective tools available. Dash cameras for construction fleets offer real-time video footage, giving fleet managers greater visibility into daily fleet operations. This footage is essential for detecting unsafe driving behavior, identifying potential hazards, and responding quickly to on-site incidents in the moments that matter.

What are dash cams and how do they work?

Dash cams are video recording devices installed in vehicles to capture video footage of the road and driver behavior. Dash cameras are typically mounted on the dashboard or windshield, providing a clear view of the vehicle’s surroundings and interior. Dash camera systems continuously record video and audio, typically relying on memory cards or cloud storage to save footage for later review.

By providing high-quality video evidence and real-time insights into driver behavior, dash cams serve as a powerful tool for construction fleets to improve safety, reduce accidents, and streamline operations. Modern fleet dash cam systems offer a range of advanced functionality to improve construction fleet safety, including:

• AI-powered detections: Dash cams equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities can detect and alert drivers to risky behaviors such as distracted driving, drowsiness, hard braking, tailgating, lane departures, mobile usage, and more in real time.

• Dual-facing cameras: Many dash cams now feature both front-facing and driver-facing cameras, providing a comprehensive view of the road ahead and the driver’s actions. This dual-camera setup helps to identify and address unsafe driving behaviors while also providing camera footage in the event of an incident.

• High-definition video: With full HD or 4K resolution, modern dash cams capture clear video evidence that can be crucial in accident investigations, insurance claims, and legal proceedings.

• Connection with fleet management solutions: Dash cams can work together with advanced fleet management solutions and telematics platforms, providing construction fleet managers with centralized access to video footage, driver safety metrics, and detailed incident reports. By combining dash cam video with GPS tracking, vehicle diagnostics, and driver behavior coaching, construction companies gain a comprehensive, real-time view of fleet operations that improves safety, compliance, and overall efficiency.

Benefits of dash cams for construction fleets

There are many benefits of dash cams for construction fleets, as they improve safety by  protecting drivers, vehicles, and equipment. By capturing real-time, high-definition video footage, dash cameras provide construction fleet managers with greater visibility into day-to-day operations, helping to reduce accidents, ensure job site accountability, and improve the bottom line. Here are some of the key benefits of dash cams for construction fleets:

1. Accident reduction through real-time monitoring

Dash cams provide real-time monitoring of driver behavior and road conditions, sending instant notifications for risky driving habits such as distracted driving, harsh braking, drowsiness, speeding, and more. Comprehensive visibility and real-time alerts allow fleet managers to take a proactive approach to safety, enabling construction fleet managers to efficiently coach truck drivers and prevent accidents before they occur. By reducing accidents, construction fleets can protect their drivers, equipment, and job sites while minimizing costly downtime and repairs.

2. Driver exoneration with video evidence

If an accident does occur, dash cam footage offers clear video evidence that can help streamline incident investigation and exonerate drivers from false claims. This protects drivers and your construction company from costly legal battles, fraudulent claims, and rising insurance premiums. Having high-definition dash cam footage strengthens your position during insurance claims and accelerates incident investigation. 

3. Reduced insurance premiums and litigation risks

Insurance companies recognize the value of dash cam technology in improving fleet safety and lowering accident rates. Many insurers offer premium discounts to construction fleets that implement dash cams. Additionally, clear video footage can simplify claim investigations, reduce litigation costs, improve risk management, and lower financial risks. 

4. Enhanced driver coaching and driver training

Dash cam recordings provide safety managers with valuable insights into driver performance, providing camera footage that highlights both safe driving and risky behaviors. By reviewing real incidents from dash cam video, safety managers can develop comprehensive safety programs that deliver targeted coaching and personalized driver training that addresses specific safety issues. This targeted feedback improves driver performance, fosters accountability, and promotes a strong culture of safety across the construction fleet.

5. Improved job site security and theft prevention

Dash cams help monitor fleet vehicles and equipment even when parked or off-duty. This surveillance deters theft, vandalism, and unauthorized vehicle use on busy construction sites or remote locations. Protecting valuable assets with dash cams reduces replacement costs and downtime, ensuring your fleet remains efficient and secure.

6. Enhanced compliance with safety regulations

Dash cam footage helps support compliance with OSHA and other industry safety standards. Video evidence demonstrates safe driving practices, proper equipment usage, and adherence to company-wide safety protocols. This simplifies audits and inspections, helping construction fleets avoid costly fines and shutdowns related to safety violations.

7. Cost savings and increased profitability

Dash cams help construction fleets save money by reducing safety-related expenses, minimizing vehicle downtime, and lowering insurance premiums. By preventing accidents and reducing liability with clear video evidence, fleets avoid costly repairs, legal fees, and claim settlements. Additionally, improved driver behavior and optimized fleet operations lead to fuel savings and more efficient use of resources. These factors contribute to improving the bottom line, making dash cams a smart investment for long-term financial success in construction fleet management.

What is the best dash cam for construction companies?

There are a wide range of dash cams available in the market today, such as solutions from Samsara, Motive, Lytx, and Netradyne. With so many options available, which solution makes the most sense for your construction company? Below is an overview of key functionality you need to evaluate when choosing the best dash cam for your fleet:

1. Dash cam hardware and video capabilities

When evaluating dash cams, it’s important to choose a solution that offers ruggedized hardware and high-resolution image quality. This makes it possible to protect drivers and resolve incidents quickly. While solutions from Motive, Lytx, and Netradyne offer basic features, limited field-of-view and reliance on microSD memory cards may lead to poor video quality and make footage difficult to retrieve when it matters most. Samsara AI Dash Cams stand out with 1440p resolution, enhanced night vision, built-in cellular connectivity (with fallback to 3G or Wi-Fi), and secure cloud access. This ensures you get the footage you need, when you need it.

2. AI safety detections

Advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have enabled dash cams to detect safety hazards and risky driving behaviors in real time, helping fleets take a more proactive approach to safety. While Motive, Netradyne, and Lytx offer basic AI features like harsh event detection and tailgating alerts, Samsara sets itself apart with the most advanced and comprehensive AI capabilities. Trained on over 180 billion minutes of video, Samsara’s AI technology and deep learning models power industry-leading features like Drowsiness Detection based on 17 indicators, giving safety managers the tools they need to effectively coach drivers and reduce incidents.

3. Coaching workflows

The primary goal of dash cams is to protect drivers by reducing the frequency and severity of safety incidents—and effective coaching is essential to achieving that. While all four solutions—Samsara, Lytx, Motive, and Netradyne—offer standard coaching tools like safety alerts and performance scores, only Samsara leverages AI capabilities to automatically surface high-risk events and support personalized coaching based on specific driver needs. With real-time In-Cab Alerts and In-Cab Nudges™, Samsara helps fleet managers develop proactive coaching that empower drivers to build safe habits in the moments that matter.

If you’d like to see the full breakdown on how these different dash cam solutions compare, check out our guide, A Head-to-Head Comparison of the Best Dash Cam Solutions.

Improve safety and reduce accidents across your construction operations with Samsara

Recognized as one of the industry leaders in dash cams, Samsara’s AI Dash Cams are built on a powerful cloud-based platform, making it possible to improve safety and reduce costs. By leveraging Samsara AI Dash Cams, construction companies can better protect their drivers, streamline exoneration, and reduce operational costs. 

Samsara AI Dash Cams also offer built-in AI technology that helps you proactively coach drivers and reduce incidents, while secure encryption protects your data. Our recent State of Connected Operations Report, Smarter, Faster, Safer: The AI Revolution in Physical Operations, reveals that 94% of leaders believe their organization needs to invest in AI technology solutions so they are not left behind, and more than half (51%) are already using AI. 87% of organizations report that they will increase investments in AI in the next year. For organizations that are already implementing AI, 100% of leaders reported experiencing benefits, including improved safety (45%) and employee productivity (42%).

The Rasmussen Group, a construction company supporting diverse construction and heavy equipment functions, deployed Samsara AI Dash Cams to develop a comprehensive safety program, improving safety with in-cab alerts and exonerating drivers with on-demand video retrieval. As a result, Rasmussen has decreased mobile usage while driving by 90%, speeding and running stop signs by 70%, and backup incidents by 25%. Furthermore, Rasmussen is now easily able to exonerate not-at-fault drivers. In one recent incident, Rasmussen exonerated a driver at the scene, saving an estimated $1.2 million.

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If you’d like to learn more about how you can improve safety for your construction company, check out Samsara’s Cameras and Video solution and speak to our team today.