How to Get Traffic Camera Footage After an Accident in Tustin
To get traffic camera footage after an accident, you have to find out who owns the camera and ask them in writing to save the video, fast. In Tustin, most useful video comes from businesses, homes, buses, police and dashcams, not from the cameras on traffic signals, and much of it is erased within days or weeks. When the other driver’s insurer disputes who ran the red light, that video can settle it, which is why I treat it as a priority in car accident cases.
Here’s where video of a Tustin crash might exist, how long it lasts, and exactly how to ask for it.
Do traffic cameras record accidents?
Often they don’t. Many cameras you see on signal poles and freeways are for live traffic monitoring only.
- Caltrans freeway cameras (on the I-5 and SR-55 near Tustin): Caltrans states that its “traffic camera video footage and still images are neither retained nor archived.” Don’t spend your first days chasing them.
- City of Tustin signal cameras: the city’s traffic signal information doesn’t say whether any signal cameras record or how long video is kept. Ask the city in writing (see below) rather than assume either way.
- Red-light cameras: Tustin does not appear to run a red-light camera program.
That’s why the best video usually comes from somewhere else.
Where to find video of your crash
Look for every camera that faced the scene. Common sources in Tustin:
- Businesses: gas stations, banks, restaurants and shopping centers. Along busy corridors like Red Hill Avenue, Newport Avenue and Jamboree Road, and around The District at Tustin Legacy (Barranca Parkway and Jamboree), many storefronts and parking lots have cameras.
- Homes: doorbell and driveway cameras on residential streets.
- Dashcams: yours, the other driver’s, and witnesses’ cars, including rideshare drivers.
- OCTA buses: OCTA buses have onboard cameras.
- Police: body-worn and in-car cameras if officers responded.
- The Tustin Metrolink Station (Edinger Avenue near Jamboree) has its own security cameras.
How long footage is kept
Assume the clock is already running. Private systems often record over themselves automatically, sometimes within days. Public agencies have longer rules, but they aren’t unlimited:
| Source | How long it may be kept | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Businesses and homes | Often days to weeks | Ask in writing right away |
| OCTA bus cameras | OCTA asks for requests within 10 days | Submit a records request within 10 days |
| City “routine video monitoring” | May be destroyed after one year with approval; duplicates kept at least 90 days (Gov. Code 34090.6) | Request early; a pending claim requires preservation |
| Caltrans freeway cameras | Not recorded | Skip |
Under section 34090.6, if city recordings are evidence in a claim or pending litigation, they must be preserved until it’s resolved. That’s one more reason to put the city on notice early.
Step by step: requesting footage in Tustin
1. Write down every camera you can see
Go back to the scene within a day or two, if you’re able to, or ask a friend. Photograph each camera and note the business name and address. Note the exact time of the crash and your direction of travel.
2. Ask businesses and homeowners to save the video
Ask politely in person, then follow up in writing the same day: the date, time, location and what the camera may show, and a request to save the footage. Many will let you or your lawyer copy it. Others will only release it with a subpoena, but they can still preserve it now.
3. Send a preservation letter
A preservation (or “spoliation”) letter formally asks the owner of the video not to erase it. If a party to the case deliberately destroys evidence, California juries can be told they may assume the evidence would have hurt that party (CACI 204, Willful Suppression of Evidence). The sooner the letter goes out, the more likely the video still exists.
4. Request OCTA bus video within 10 days
OCTA asks people requesting bus camera video to do so “within 10 days of the event.” Use OCTA’s public records request page and include the date, time, four-digit bus number, route, type of incident, cross streets and direction of travel.
5. Get the Tustin Police report and request police video
The City of Tustin’s traffic collision report page explains how to order a collision report online through LexisNexis, which charges a $10 convenience fee. Other police records, including video, are requested through the Tustin Police NextRequest portal, or from Police Records at 300 Centennial Way. Collision reports may be released to involved parties and their authorized representatives, with identification required.
6. Ask the City of Tustin about any signal or city camera video
Send a California Public Records Act request through the City of Tustin public records portal. The city must decide within 10 days whether it has disclosable records, and can extend that by up to 14 days in unusual circumstances (Gov. Code 7922.535). That’s a deadline to respond, not necessarily to hand over the video.
7. Use a subpoena once a lawsuit is filed
If a business won’t release footage voluntarily, a subpoena in a filed case can require it. That’s another reason the preservation letter matters: it keeps the video from being erased before the case gets that far.
Why video matters to the insurance company
Video ends arguments about fault. California uses comparative fault, so if the insurer can convince you that you were partly to blame, it pays less. A clip showing the light was red, or that the other driver was looking at a phone, removes that argument. Having worked on the insurance side earlier in my career, I know a fault decision is only as strong as the evidence behind it, and clear video is very hard to argue with.
If you’re dealing with an adjuster now, my guide to how car insurance companies handle accident claims explains each step, and 4 things to do after a car accident covers the first days. Video is just as important if you were hurt while walking or riding a bike: see the rights of injured cyclists after a crash.
Traffic camera footage FAQs
Do traffic cameras record accidents?
Not always. Caltrans says its freeway camera video is neither retained nor archived. City signal cameras vary, so ask the city in writing. Business, home, bus and dashcam video is often more useful.
How long do traffic cameras keep footage?
It depends on the owner. Private cameras may record over video within days or weeks. OCTA asks for bus video requests within 10 days. California cities may destroy routine video after one year with approval, and duplicates must be kept at least 90 days.
Are car accident reports public record in California?
Not to everyone. In Tustin, collision reports may be released to involved parties and their authorized representatives, with identification. You can order yours online through the city’s LexisNexis link.
Can I ask a business to show me its security footage?
Yes, you can ask, and many businesses will help. They don’t have to give you a copy without a subpoena, but asking them in writing to preserve it protects the evidence.
Talk to a Tustin car accident lawyer
If an insurer is disputing fault after your crash, call me at (714) 461-6003 or request a free consultation. I can start preservation requests right away, and you’ll work directly with me. Under my No Recovery, No Fee Guarantee, you pay nothing unless I recover compensation for you. Learn more about my work as a Tustin car accident attorney.