Driverless cars are receiving extensive press coverage. The Department of Transport set out in a consultation document in the Autumn of 2016 which states that automated vehicles will deliver social, environmental and economic benefits by the following means:
- Improving road safety – with over 90 per cent of road traffic accidents (RTA’s) currently attributed to human error
- Enabling better use of road space, leading to improved traffic flow and fuel savings
- Enhanced mobility, giving better transport access to those who currently cannot drive
The Government categorises the automation of vehicles on a sliding scale from 1, where the driver retains control but is assisted by some longitudinal and lateral control, through to 5, where the system can control lateral and longitudinal movement in all uses and driver intervention is not needed.
Ford expects to be mass-producing driverless cars for use in 2021 and Google by 2020. Ford has also announced that it is proceeding straight to Level 4 and 5, and will not bother with the hybrid transitional cars. Level 4 is for use within a city area and Level 5 is fully autonomous for use in any driving conditions or location.
Google has produced statistics from its driverless vehicle test reports. Where the software detects an issue with the autonomous vehicle, which may affect its safe operation, it immediately hands control over to the driver. In the fourth quarter of 2014 that was occurring on average every 785 miles. A year later that was down to once every 5318 miles.
Google plans to go straight to level 4 which it describes as a car that can transport people at 20-30 miles per hour through city centres.
In August 2016 in Pittsburgh, USA, Uber started using self-drive taxis - albeit with a driver ready to take over if required. Singapore aims to have a fully driverless taxi fleet by 2018.
The perceived benefits of driverless cars include:
- A significant reduction in time off work through road accident injuries
- A reduction in benefits payments related to RTA's
- NHS expenditure on RTA victims may also significantly decrease
- Fuel consumption should fall as cars are driven more consistently and economically
- Those with limited mobility, disabled and elderly people will benefit from greater access to transport
If all goes according to plan, the introduction of driverless cars to the UK's roads should bring about an overall reduction in accidents involving vehicles and consequently fewer claims.
However, the Government needs to ensure that the Insurance and other regulations for driverless cars are in place and there are still many uncertainties yet to be addressed.
For example - if an accident occurs, involving a driverless vehicle, who takes responsibility if driver error is taken out of the equation? Which poses the further question of whether automated vehicles can adequately allow for unpredictable action on the part of a non-automated vehicle?
What if the automated system hands back control to the driver, or if the driver has intervened and taken control of the vehicle, and they fail to react quickly enough to avoid a collision or accident?
Would you need to pass the driving test, in its current form, to drive a Level 4 or 5 car?
Has the driver downloaded the latest software updates to keep the car operating at optimum performance?
Do you sue the manufacturer of the car, or the software when something goes wrong?
Volvo has already announced that it will cover all loss involving any of its driverless vehicles, and other manufacturers are expected to follow suit. Any legal action is likely to take place between car manufacturers and software suppliers or whichever body is responsible for road and system maintenance.
There are of course many more questions that need to be answered. One thing that is certain, however, is that driverless cars will become commonplace over the next few years.
Driver error may not be fully eradicated, but it should tail off significantly. In the meantime the current insurance and claim system will still apply, and if you are involved in an RTA then one of Wake Smith’s specialist advisers can help.
