Quick Answer
Dash cams are legal in commercial trucks when you mount them where federal rules allow: within 8.5 inches below the top of the wiper-swept area or 7 inches above the bottom, outside your sight lines (49 CFR 393.60(e)). The legal risk is in the cab: audio recording, face scanning and employee monitoring notice, which vary by state as of October 2026.
Key Takeaways
- FMCSA allows camera-based "vehicle safety technology" up to 8.5 inches below the top of the wiper sweep. The limit was 4 inches until the rule effective May 6, 2022.
- Federal wiretap law allows recording a conversation if one party consents (18 U.S.C. 2511(2)(d)). California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Washington require consent of all parties.
- Illinois BIPA requires written notice and a written release before collecting a scan of face geometry. Liquidated damages are $1,000 per negligent violation and $5,000 per intentional or reckless one.
- Texas caps face-scan penalties at $25,000 per violation, enforced by the attorney general.
- New York and Connecticut require written notice to employees before electronic monitoring, with civil penalties of $500, $1,000 and $3,000 for first, second and later offenses.
- For leased owner-operators, 49 CFR part 376 doesn't mention cameras, but any camera rental or charge-back must be written into the lease.
“Dash cams are legal in trucks. Mount them within 8.5 inches below the top of the wiper sweep or 7 inches above the bottom, outside your sight lines (49 CFR 393.60(e)). Keep cab audio off unless everyone consents in writing, and get written releases before any camera scans driver faces in Illinois.”
Are dash cams legal in trucks?
Yes. Our guide to choosing an ELD with a dash cam covers the basic mounting zones and touches on California audio and Illinois face-scan law. This page goes deeper on each legal question.
FMCSA treats dash cams as "vehicle safety technology." The 49 CFR 393.5 definition names a "driver camera system" and covers any device that contains cameras or video. Under 49 CFR 393.60(e)(1)(ii), those devices must be mounted:
- Not more than 216 mm (8.5 inches) below the upper edge of the area swept by the wipers, or
- Not more than 175 mm (7 inches) above the lower edge of that area, and
- Outside the driver's sight lines to the road and to highway signs and signals.
The March 7, 2022 final rule (87 FR 12596), effective May 6, 2022, raised the top band from 4 to 8.5 inches. It codified the exemptions FMCSA had been granting camera makers one by one.
Do state dash cam windshield laws still apply?
Yes. In the 2022 rule, FMCSA stated that "nothing in this document preempts any State law or regulation," after a commenter pointed to California's corner-square windshield limits.
California has since lined up with the federal rule for heavy trucks. As of October 2026, Vehicle Code 26708(b)(14) exempts vehicle safety technology, as defined in 49 CFR 393.5, on vehicles listed in Vehicle Code 34500 when it otherwise complies with 393.60. That list includes truck tractors and motortrucks with three or more axles over 10,000 pounds GVWR.
If you run a smaller straight truck or a hotshot pickup, check your state's windshield statute too. The safest mount is high and centered behind the mirror, inside the 8.5-inch band.
Is it legal to record audio in a truck cab?
It depends on the state. Federal law is one-party consent: you can record a conversation you're part of, or one where a participant agreed. Several states require every party to consent, and a driver's phone call in a closed cab is the kind of conversation they protect.
These are the all-party-consent statutes we verified on each state's official legislature site, as of October 2026:
State | Statute | Consent rule | Penalty or note in the statute |
|---|---|---|---|
California | Penal Code 632 | All parties to a confidential communication | Fine up to $2,500 per violation, jail, or both (first offense) |
Florida | Fla. Stat. 934.03(2)(d) | All parties must give prior consent | Third-degree felony for most violations, 934.03(4)(a) |
Illinois | 720 ILCS 5/14-2 | All parties, for surreptitious recording of a private conversation | Applies to secret recording |
Maryland | Cts. & Jud. Proc. 10-402(c)(3) | All parties must give prior consent | Felony: up to 5 years, $10,000 fine, or both |
Massachusetts | G.L. c. 272, s. 99 | Secret recording needs prior authority from all parties | Fine up to $10,000, up to 5 years in state prison, or both |
Pennsylvania | 18 Pa.C.S. 5703 and 5704(4) | All parties must give prior consent | Third-degree felony |
Washington | RCW 9.73.030 | All persons in a private conversation | A recorded announcement that recording is underway counts as consent |
Other states may also require all-party consent. We left out any state we couldn't confirm on a primary source.
Your truck crosses state lines all day, so keep cab audio off. If you need audio, get written consent from every driver and post a notice in the cab for riders. California's Vehicle Code 26708(b)(13)(B) already requires a posted notice that a passenger's conversation may be recorded for video event recorders mounted under that paragraph.
What are the driver-facing camera laws for face scans?
A camera that measures your face to identify you can trigger biometric privacy laws.
Lucid's dual-facing AI dash cam uses its cab lens to detect driver distraction and sound in-cab alerts. With any camera, ask in writing whether the cab lens also identifies drivers by face, because that's what these laws regulate.
- Illinois BIPA ([740 ILCS 14](https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=3004&ChapterID=57)). A "scan of face geometry" is a biometric identifier. Before collecting one, a company must tell the driver in writing, state the purpose and how long it's kept, and get a written release. It also needs a public policy to destroy the data when the purpose ends or within 3 years of the last interaction. Liquidated damages are $1,000 per negligent and $5,000 per intentional or reckless violation, or actual damages if greater. Since Aug. 2, 2024, repeated collection of the same scan from the same person by the same method counts as one violation.
- Texas (Bus. & Com. Code 503.001). A "record of face geometry" can't be captured for a commercial purpose unless the person is told first and consents. It must be destroyed within one year after the purpose ends. For an employer collecting it for security, the purpose ends when employment ends. The attorney general can seek up to $25,000 per violation.
- Washington (RCW 19.375). Narrower. It excludes photos and video and data generated from them, covers only enrolling identifiers for a commercial (marketing) purpose, and is enforced only by the attorney general.
Can my employer put a camera in my truck?
In general, yes. No federal rule stops a carrier from installing cameras in its own trucks, and the state rules we found are mostly about notice, not permission.
New York Civil Rights Law 52-c requires employers with a place of business in New York to give written notice at hiring of electronic monitoring, get the employee's written or electronic acknowledgment, and post the notice. Its text names phone, email and internet monitoring, so whether a cab camera alone triggers it isn't spelled out.
Connecticut General Statutes 31-48d requires prior written notice of the types of electronic monitoring, and it lists "camera" by name. It covers monitoring "on an employer's premises," and the statute doesn't say whether a truck cab counts. Both laws set civil penalties of $500, $1,000 and $3,000 for first, second and later offenses.
California adds one driver right: under Vehicle Code 26708(b)(13)(F), an employer must give an employee driver unedited copies of video event recorder footage free within five days of a request. If you're unsure whether these apply, give the notice anyway.
Who decides about cameras if I'm leased onto a carrier?
The lease does. Under 49 CFR 376.12, the carrier gets exclusive possession, control and use of your truck for the lease term and assumes complete responsibility for operating it. Part 376 never mentions cameras, so camera terms come from your contract.
What the regulation does say about equipment and money:
- The lease must state that you're not required to buy or rent any products, equipment or services from the carrier as a condition of the lease (376.12(i)).
- If you do rent or buy a camera from the carrier with deductions from your pay, the lease must spell out those terms (376.12(i)).
- Every charge-back must be listed in the lease with how it's computed, and you get copies of the documents behind it (376.12(h)).
Read the camera clause before you sign. Our piece on leasing on vs running your own authority covers the rest of that decision.
How should a small fleet roll out driver-facing cameras?
Use this checklist before the first camera goes live:
- List the states where your drivers live, are hired, or regularly run, and check each one's audio, biometric and notice rules.
- Write a camera policy: which lenses record, when, whether audio is on, and how footage is used in discipline.
- Set cab audio to off by default. If you turn it on, collect written consent from each driver and post an audio notice in the cab.
- Ask the provider in writing whether the driver-facing camera identifies drivers by face. If it does, collect BIPA-style written releases and publish a retention schedule.
- Give each driver the policy before install and get a signed acknowledgment. Post a monitoring notice at your terminal or office.
- Mount every camera inside the 393.60(e) zones and photograph the install for your files.
- Set a retention period for routine clips and a legal-hold rule after crashes. See our guide on using dash cam footage after a truck accident.
- Name who can view footage, by role. Lucid's camera lets you stream live video or pull recorded clips remotely, so decide in writing who may use live view and when.
- For leased owner-operators, put camera ownership, rental cost and footage access into the lease or a signed addendum.
- Review the policy after 90 days with driver feedback, and fold it into your fleet safety program.
Lucid's AI dash cam comes with the Premium plan or as an add-on to Standard; see current plans on the pricing page.
Want video evidence and in-cab safety alerts? See Lucid's AI dash cams
Educational content, not legal advice. Confirm requirements against current FMCSA regulations and your state's rules.
FAQ
Are dash cams legal in trucks?
Yes. Under 49 CFR 393.60(e), a dash cam can sit up to 8.5 inches below the top of the wiper-swept area or 7 inches above the bottom, outside your sight lines. Also check your state's windshield law.
Do I need an FMCSA exemption to mount a dash cam lower on the windshield?
No, as long as it stays within the 8.5-inch band. The rule effective May 6, 2022 replaced the old 4-inch limit and the vendor exemptions.
Is it legal to record audio in my truck cab?
Federal law allows it with one party's consent, but California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Washington require all parties to consent. Keep audio off or get written consent.
Can my employer put a camera in my truck without telling me?
Federal law doesn't require notice, but some states do. New York and Connecticut require written notice of electronic monitoring, and Illinois requires written notice and a release before any face scan.
Can I cover the driver-facing camera during sleeper berth time?
No federal rule addresses it, so it's set by your company's camera policy or your lease. Get the answer in writing before install.