The Black Box Most Drivers Forget They Have Nearly every passenger vehicle sold in the United States today carries an event data recorder, often called a black box.
When sensors detect a sudden change in speed that signals a crash, the module locks in what it was holding.
Depending on the make and model year, it may include vehicle speed, throttle position, whether the brake pedal was pressed, steering angle, engine speed, seatbelt use and the force of the impact itself.
Telematics, GPS and the Connected Car Event data recorders are only the oldest piece of the picture.
The strongest injury claims today pair what witnesses saw with what the vehicle recorded, the cameras captured and the phones logged, then check each against the others.