Who is Liable When a Self-Driving Car Injures Someone in Florida?

In the very near future, you may be sharing the road in Sarasota with driverless cars. Manufacturers should roll out nearly autonomous (Level 4) cars by 2021 and fully autonomous (Level 5) vehicles by around 2025, The Drive reports. In the meantime, you can expect automakers and technology companies to step up testing of driverless cars. For instance, Ford is currently testing its self-driving fleet in Miami-Dade County.

As testing increases and this new era of transportation nears, we will need to address an important and very practical question: Who is liable if one of these driverless vehicles causes a car accident?

Autonomous Vehicles Should Reduce – Not Eliminate – Traffic Accidents

In 2015, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released a study which found that driver error contributed to 94 percent of crashes. The human errors included failure to pay attention, driving too fast and falling asleep at the wheel. In this sense, by taking human error out of the equation, autonomous vehicles could make our roads much safer.

However, as a recent accident in Arizona demonstrates, autonomous cars won’t eliminate all crashes. The accident occurred in March in Tempe, Arizona, Reuters reports. An Uber test vehicle that was in autonomous mode, with a human operator behind the wheel, struck and killed a pedestrian.

A computer won’t drink and drive or text while driving. Yet, situations clearly will still arise that cause autonomous vehicles to get into crashes. If a driverless car should strike and injure you, you should have the right to compensation. The big question will be, “Who provides this compensation?”

Determining Liability in Driverless Car Accidents

Whoever is responsible for a crash should be the one to pay damages. So, if a driver controls a car that is not in autonomous mode, and that driver does something negligent to cause a crash, that driver should be liable.

Liability becomes complex if a crash occurs when the car is in full autonomous mode, or Level 5 autonomy. This means that the car has no human control over its speed, braking, steering and other features. In this scenario, it would appear that the manufacturer of the vehicle should be liable if a defect caused the crash. Interestingly, a Florida statute would shield the auto manufacturer from liability if a “third party” converted the car into an autonomous vehicle, and in turn, that conversion or the autonomous vehicle equipment caused the crash.

The bottom line: If a human driver does something negligent to cause a crash, that driver should be responsible for damages. If a vehicle defect or defective autonomous equipment or technology caused the crash, then it would seem that the manufacturer of that defective item should be liable. With that said, scenarios could potentially exist in which multiple parties share responsibility.

Over time, these issues will be worked out by legislators and courts. According to Fortune, no court has ruled on liability in an autonomous vehicle crash because. To date, all accidents involving those vehicles have been settled out of court, including the recent fatal crash in Arizona, according to Reuters.

Our Sarasota Car Accident Attorneys Are Here to Help You

At Buckman & Buckman, we believe it is crucial for our Sarasota car accident attorneys to stay on top of emerging issues such as driverless car liability. We will continue to study this issue. Rest assured, we will be ready to protect the rights of anyone injured in a collision with an autonomous vehicle. To learn more about how we help auto accident victims, or to discuss the specific facts of your crash, contact us today. We always provide free initial consultations.