I believe that some car owners have encountered this kind of unfortunate thing: their car is parked on the side of the road but it has been scratched, and they want to know who did it but they have no monitoring and can only give up. However, this problem may be partially solved on Tesla. Recently, a Tesla Model 3 in the United Kingdom also encountered such a situation, but the owner finally found the real culprit through the car's "sentinel mode" and filed a lawsuit, which is also the first time that the United Kingdom has used car camera evidence to prosecute such crimes.
Tesla Model 3
According to foreign media reports, the person who deliberately scratched Tesla was a female sales manager named Valente. According to her later confession, she scratched the car because the Tesla was parked somewhat close to her car, which affected it. So to vent his displeasure, Valente used his other hand to hold the key while leaving a 4-inch scratch on the Tesla. Although this action is stealthy enough, it is completely recorded by the camera on the front fender of the Model 3.
Screenshot of Monitoring when Valent's medication history scratches a vehicle
Tesla owners did not find this scratch at the first time, but after the scratch was found, they first called up the monitoring of "sentinel mode" and successfully found the party. In addition to recording the scene of Valente scratching the vehicle, the video also captured her face and the license plate of the vehicle she was driving, which also facilitated the police to quickly find her later. In the end, Valente was sentenced to six months of conditional release and paid the Model 3 owner £1,078.83 for property damage, which was also the first case in the UK to use Tesla in-vehicle video as evidence in British criminal proceedings.
Tesla surveillance cameras
Although Tesla's cameras were originally designed for autonomous driving, sentinel mode has also made a significant contribution to handling disputes and fighting crime. Sentinel mode has played a big role in dealing with many issues, including theft, scratching vehicles, traffic accidents, etc., so many electric vehicles are also beginning to carry this function.