(The Center Square) – Henrico County police plan to end their license plate camera contract with Flock Safety over concerns about residents’ privacy.

The county announced Tuesday that police intend to cut ties with the company within seven days. Officials will review other options to maintain police operations.

The county does not anticipate any cost to exit the contract, Communications Director Ben Sheppard told The Center Square.

The decision follows a July agreement to renew the contract from Nov. 15 through Nov. 14, 2027. The renewal included a 3% increase in the annual camera fee.

Board of Supervisors Chair Roscoe D. Cooper III, who represents the Fairfield District, said residents had raised concerns about the company’s expanding camera network and whether collected information was adequately protected.

Cooper said county officials were confident Henrico police had used the data appropriately for legitimate law enforcement purposes.

“We cannot ignore the potential for misuse of system data by others,” Cooper said in the county’s announcement.

The renewal agreement lists an annual fee of about $2,652 per camera.

Henrico began contracting with Flock in 2022. According to the police division’s website, the cameras photograph license plates and vehicle details, including make, body type and color, on public roads.

Police say the system alerts officers when it detects a vehicle associated with a crime or missing person case. The division credits the cameras with helping investigators identify suspects.

The division says images are deleted after 21 days unless needed as court evidence. It also says it conducts monthly audits and shares data only with other law enforcement agencies in the Commonwealth.

Henrico joins other Virginia localities that have moved away from the technology. Harrisonburg voted in July to terminate its Flock contract. Arlington County directed officials Sept. 15 to discontinue county-leased Flock technology and begin removing 41 cameras.

Virginia’s statewide standards for law enforcement use of automated license plate readers took effect July 1, 2025.

As The Center Square previously reported, a Virginia State Crime Commission survey found Flock was the most common vendor among responding agencies that used license plate readers.

The commission also found 20 agencies reported giving out-of-state law enforcement continuous access to their data, while nine reported continuous access by federal agencies. The report said Virginia law prohibits that sharing.