Vancouverite uses dashcam to help prove hit and run

Vancouver resident Mike Tusa just purchased his $150 dashcam recorder two weeks ago.

“I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to get one but I had seen so many sort of close calls and I thought it was better to be safe,” Tusa said.

But suddenly he found himself the victim of what appears to be a hit and run accident.

“The first thing I heard was the acceleration and the screeching of the tires, and before I could even react the whole car shook,” Tusa said.

“It took over a second before I realized what happened and I tried pursuing him to get a licence plate.”

READ MORE: Distracted driving? Police vehicle caught swerving over road           

Tusa kept up the chase until the driver pulled over a second time. Then sparks really flew.

The video shows the driver of the other car swearing and yelling at Tusa.

Tusa says when he first called ICBC and Vancouver police, they told him it wasn’t technically a hit and run because he had exchanged words with the other driver.

“I was kind of left, sort of stunned because I just felt like someone just assaulted me with their car.”

But after ICBC allegedly viewed the video, Tusa claims everything changed.

READ MORE: Caught on camera: Police dashcam captures sudden collision with elk

“ICBC came back and they saw the video, because after that point they hadn’t,” Tusa said. “And as soon as they did they suggested I contact the police.”

He says when he talked to police it was almost like he was speaking to a different person.

“As soon as they had some recognition from ICBC that this was something legitimate to take seriously the police gave me a file number.”

Dashcams are routinely used in Russia, where car accident rates are some of the highest in the world.

READ MORE: Alberta dashcam catches near collision as car passes truck on Highway 22

Russian courts reportedly prefer video evidence to witness testimony. And Tusa agrees dashcams are worth the investment.

“It’s impossible to put a value on it, it’s invaluable,” Tusa said.

“I think if anything, ICBC might want to consider a deduction policy to actually use these in their cars all the time because there is not kind of situation where there’s no situation of ‘he said, she said’ it’s just evidence.”