Crime Stoppers Victoria and Victoria Police are calling on the community to share footage of high-risk driving in a new campaign, ‘See It. Share It.’
This road safety initiative uses de-identified footage of drivers behaving badly, to demonstrate dangerous driving behaviour and encourage Victorians to submit their own footage to Crime Stoppers and help keep our roads safe.
Data from the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) shows that over 1,200 lives have been lost on Victorian roads over the past five years, with 295 recorded in 2023, the highest number of lives lost on Victorian roads in 15 years. There have been 242 lives lost to date on Victorian roads in 2024.
With more people installing dashcams or carrying recording devices, Chief Executive of Crime Stoppers Victoria, Stella Smith, says that every person can play a role in road safety, “Each one of us has the power to make a difference. By reporting what you see, you can help prevent tragic incidents before they occur. Even one life lost on our roads is one too many.”
Crime Stoppers encourages the community to share footage through their online platform, which provides the option to remain anonymous and reports can be completed on mobile or computer.
Publicly sharing footage remains a rare and significant step for Crime Stoppers with Ms Smith explaining, “We do not take the decision to release footage lightly, but we believe showing real examples of high-risk driving allows the community to see the type of footage that can assist in investigations.”
Whether you are a motorist, motorcyclist, pedestrian or cyclist – road safety is everyone’s responsibility, and we all have a role to play in reducing road trauma.
Victoria Police Road Policing Assistant Commissioner, Glenn Weir, cautioned that high-risk drivers will be held accountable. “If you engage in risk taking behaviours on our roads, even if the police don’t always see you, be aware that other people may report you. The community is watching, and it is only a matter of time before you face the consequences,” he said.
The penalties for high-risk driving in Victoria can be severe, particularly when drugs or alcohol are involved. Consequences may include loss of licence, having your vehicle impounded, significant fines, or even imprisonment. For dangerous driving specifically, you can face a fine of up to $47,520, have your vehicle impounded for 30 days or up to 2 years imprisonment.
“Police can use footage submitted by the community to investigate dangerous driving, and rest assured – we can, and frequently do, detect and prosecute offending drivers. We make no apologies for holding these people to account and removing them from our roads,” Assistant Commissioner Weir added. This initiative does not encourage filming while driving. However, if you witness dangerous driving and it is captured on a dashcam or recorded safely, you can upload your footage at crimestoppersvic.com.au.