Henrico Citizen reported that Henrico County Public Works employees removed every Flock Safety license plate reader camera the county had leased. The work happened on Halloween, Oct. 31, and county officials reported it Nov. 2.
The county's contract with Flock ended Oct. 14. Crews started at opposite ends of the county and worked toward the middle. The cameras will stay in storage until Flock picks them up.
How did the removal happen?
- Henrico notified Flock on Oct. 7 that the contract would terminate effective Oct. 14.
- The county told Flock to stop collecting plate data by Oct. 14.
- The county asked Flock to remove its equipment by Oct. 21. County officials said Flock missed that date.
- Crews removed the cameras on Oct. 31.
County spokesperson Ben Sheppard confirmed that Oct. 21 was a request, not a contractual deadline. The poles still stand in most locations. Flock said it planned to remove the cameras within a commercially reasonable time. A Flock spokesperson could not give a timeline for removing the poles.
Who pays for the removal?
County social media posts said Flock would cover the costs. On Nov. 3, Sheppard said the county would not seek reimbursement, and a Flock spokesperson said the company would not provide one.
The county has not disclosed what the Oct. 31 operation cost. A review of the county's 2022 contract found no provision requiring removal within seven days of termination. The document also incorporates general contract terms that were not in the public package.
Why remove cameras that were already off?
County Attorney Andrew Newby said on Oct. 29 that the cameras were no longer collecting or transmitting information. Officials said residents still worried about them, and that concern drove the decision to remove them. Sheppard said the goal was to give residents “peace of mind.”
What changes for drivers?
Henrico's Flock program is over. The Henrico Police Department had expanded the program to 128 cameras, including six mobile units, and the county has now dismantled them. The cameras are in storage until Flock retrieves them.
The source covers only Henrico's own cameras. It says nothing about plate readers run by other agencies, so those are outside this story. To see where cameras sit, check the camera map. For background on what these cameras record, read how plate readers work.
What to ask next
The next open step is Flock's removal of the poles. The company has not given a date, so residents can ask the county whether it will confirm when the poles are gone. Residents can also ask whether any Henrico agency still uses plate readers from another vendor.