EU Mandates In‑Car Camera System for New Vehicles from July 2026

Starting 7 July 2026, the European Union will require all newly registered passenger cars to be equipped with an Advanced Driver Distraction Warning (ADDW) system. The system uses an infrared camera positioned behind the rear‑view mirror or in the dashboard to continuously monitor the driver’s head position, gaze direction and eye movements. If the driver looks away from the road for more than six seconds at speeds between 20 km/h and 50 km/h, or for more than 3.5 seconds above 50 km/h, the system issues an optical, acoustic or haptic warning.

The camera requirement is part of a broader EU safety package that also includes automatic emergency braking, rear‑view assistance, lane‑keeping aides and on‑board accident data recorders. The EU aims to lower distraction‑related crashes – in Germany alone there were over 9,500 such accidents in 2025 – and ultimately to reduce road fatalities to zero by 2050. Data captured by the camera are processed only inside the vehicle, are not stored permanently and cannot be used for biometric identification, complying with EU data‑protection rules.

Critics have voiced privacy concerns, but the regulation explicitly limits data use to the immediate evaluation needed for warnings, after which the information is overwritten. The measure is expected to cut the number of accidents caused by driver distraction while safeguarding personal data.