Motor vehicle recording devices (event data recorders)
VA vehicle data recorders
Location · Other
Vehicle recording device data, including speed, location, braking, seatbelt, and crash data, belongs to the vehicle owner and may be accessed only with the owner's consent or under listed exceptions (subscription contracts, repair, emergency response, court order, or law enforcement with probable cause). Insurers may not ask for consent until after a claim event or make it a condition of paying a claim.
- Where
- Virginia
- Citation
- Va. Code § 46.2-1088.6
- Status
- In force
- In force since
- 2006-07-01
- Enforced by
- Not stated in the section
- People can sue
- No
- Penalties
- The section sets no specific penalty.
- Applies to
- Anyone accessing data from vehicle recording devices (event data recorders, control modules, crash notification and GIS systems), including insurers, dealers, repair facilities, and subscription services (46.2-1088.6(A)-(B))
Practices it requires
- Access recorded vehicle data only with the owner's consent or under a listed exception.Va. Code § 46.2-1088.6(B)
- Insurers may not seek consent to use recorded data for accident or claim investigation until after the event and may not condition claim payment or defense on it.Va. Code § 46.2-1088.6(C)
- Repairers and emergency responders may not pass recorded data to third parties unless needed for their duties.Va. Code § 46.2-1088.6(D)
Sources
Checked against these sources on 2026-09-25 by research agent (Claude), primary sources.
Unverified: Effective dates inferred from Virginia's default July 1 effective date for regular-session acts (history notes); enacting bill pages not checked. History: 2006, cc. 851, 889.
Research reference, not legal advice.