Self-driving cars crash liability to lie with maker

And the driver should no longer be called the driver

A Tesla employee in a Model S, equipped with Autopilot hardware and software. Getty

Drivers behind the wheel of a self-driving car should not be legally liable for crashes, a report published in the UK on Wednesday suggested.

And the person at the wheel should not even be called the driver any more, merely the user in charge, according to the report tackling the legal implications of the future of driving.

Legal reforms are needed that mean the person in the driving seat of a self-driving car would be immune from prosecution “if anything goes wrong”, such as speeding or running a red light, the report said.

Under the plan, the company or body that obtained authorisation for the technology would instead face sanctions.

The report, by the Law Commission of England and Wales and the Scottish Law Commission, laid out differences between features that assist drivers, such as adaptive cruise control, and self-driving autonomous cars that will be the key to legal liability in the new vehicles.

Scottish Law Commissioner David Bartos said the proposals focused on “ensuring safety and accountability while encouraging innovation and development".

Whoever is in the driving seat – a term that remains in use even if it becomes outdated – would remain responsible for other duties such as obtaining insurance, checking loads and ensuring child passengers are wearing seat belts.

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  A self-driving car operated by California start-up Zoox. The company began to test its technology on public roads in Las Vegas in 2019. Reuters

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  W Motors chairman and chief executive Ralph Debbas in the company's self-driving prototype. The company was founded in 2012 but became famous after one of its vehicles, the Lykan HyperSport, was featured in the 2015 film 'Furious 7'. Victor Besa / The National

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  The W Motors self-driving vehicle prototype, on display at the International Defence Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi in 2019. Victor Besa / The National.

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  Cruise, the self-driving vehicle company backed by General Motors and Honda, will launch its first international robotaxi service outside the US in Dubai in 2023. Cruise

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  A driverless Cruise vehicle at the Detroit Motor Show. The company is stationing five self-driving cars in San Francisco as it looks to develop a robot taxi service. AP

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  The 10-seater smart driverless car tested by the Roads and Transport Authority in Business Bay, Dubai. Courtesy RTA.

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  Ajman's first self-driving bus went on goes on its first official drive in November 2021, with Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, director of Ajman Municipality and Planning Department and UAE's Minister of Artificial Intelligence, Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, onboard.

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  A Zoox robot taxi. The vehicle is loaded with sensors, has no steering wheel and is capable of transporting four people at up to 120 kilometres per hour. Photo: Zoox

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  A self-driving car operated by Pittsburgh start-up Argo AI in New York. The company is working with Lyft and Ford to commercialise driverless ride-hailing services at scale. AFP

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  Volvo's self-driving 360c concept car, which was first announced in 2018 and can function as a mobile office or transform into a sleeping area. Volvo says the 360c will create demand for inter-city taxi passengers travelling as far as 300km. Photo: Volvo

The report also recommended that passenger services conducted by self-driving vehicles are accessible, particularly to older and disabled people.

Transport Minister Trudy Harrison said the development of self-driving vehicles in the UK “has the potential to revolutionise travel, making everyday journeys safer, easier and greener".

“This government has been encouraging development and deployment of these technologies to understand their benefits,” she said.

“However, we must ensure we have the right regulations in place, based upon safety and accountability, in order to build public confidence.”

Fully driverless car are not yet legally permitted in the UK, but autonomous features are being developed by car makers.

In April last year the Department for Transport announced it would allow hands-free driving in vehicles with lane-keeping technology on congested motorways, at speeds of up to 37 miles an hour (59.5kph).

Matthew Avery, chief research strategy officer at road safety organisation Thatcham Research, which contributed to a consultation for the report, warned that the transition to self-driving cars was “fraught with risk".

“In the next 12 months, we're likely to see the first iterations of self-driving features on cars in the UK,” he said.

“It's significant that the Law Commission report highlights the driver's legal obligations and how they must understand that their vehicle is not yet fully self-driving.”

FILE PHOTO: A vehicle equipped with Pony. ai's self-driving technology is parked at the company's office in Fremont, California, U. S. June 17, 2021. REUTERS / Nathan Frandino / File Photo

The manufacturers of autonomous cars have been testing vehicles over several years as the tech moved from science fiction to fact.

There have also been crashes and deaths that highlighted the legal minefield the new vehicles bring with them.

Six children and an adult were taken to hospital with injuries after a car hit pedestrians in a school car park in Sussex, southern England last August.

In California, prosecutors filed two counts of vehicular manslaughter against the driver of a Tesla on autopilot that ran a red light, slammed into another car and killed two people in 2019.

Nicholas Paines, QC, Public Law Commissioner, said Britain had an “unprecedented opportunity to promote public acceptance of automated vehicles".

It will be for the UK, Scottish and Welsh Governments to decide whether to accept the report's recommendations.