The idea that cars could drive themselves was once considered merely a fantasy. Today, virtually every major auto manufacturer is in a footrace to be the first to put driverless cars into production. In fact, there are 52 different companies in California alone that have been approved to test self-driving vehicles ranging from tech giants such as Apple to automotive dinosaurs such as BMW and Ford. Other states have also approved some on-the-road testing, including New York and Texas.
Nuro on the Road in Houston
If you are still a nay-sayer, meet Nuro. Nuro is a company based in Mountain View, California, already putting driverless vehicles on the road. Fry’s Food Store in Scottsdale, Arizona, has previously begun delivery using these autonomous vehicles. Two Kroger locations in Houston are now set to offer grocery delivery via driverless vehicles. Currently, the vehicles used are modified Priuses with a passenger inside for safety. However, the plan is to replace those vehicles with fully driverless, passengerless vehicles in the near future. If the program runs smoothly, Kroger could expand it to 100 more stores in the Houston area.
Grocery stores aren’t the only companies watching Nuro’s technology. Domino’s Pizza has announced plans to start using the Nuro R2 for driver-free pizza delivery. The concept is simple. You order your pizza, a Nuro vehicle arrives, you plug in a code, and a door opens to a compartment containing your order. It is like a vending machine on wheels.
Other Applications for Driverless Cars
The applications for driverless delivery vehicles are limitless. Amazon deliveries, mail deliveries, groceries, and retail to name a few. But it does not end with delivery vehicles. Driverless vehicles could render chauffeurs obsolete. Driving jobs could be going out the window. Top automakers already estimate having true self-driving cars on the road by 2020. By 2025, non-autonomous vehicles could be on their way out. If you are currently teaching your kids to drive, it is safe to assume that driving is a skill your grandkids will likely never learn.
Who is Liable When a Self-Driving Car Crashes?
An estimated 95% of all car wrecks are caused by human error. If truly autonomous vehicles can eliminate human error, the number of lives saved each year could be in the thousands. So who is responsible if one of these vehicles gets in a wreck?
As technology such as driverless cars evolves, so must the law. There will need to be more regulation. Standards of safety set. Rigorous testing. The run-of-the-mill car wreck may now very well become an expensive-to-prove product liability case. Liability may very well hinge upon factors such as:
- whether there is any retained driving control or whether the vehicle is fully automated,
- who owns the vehicle,
- whether performance standards were met,
- whether safety testing was performed and properly reported to the appropriate government agency in the approval process, and;
- whether the vehicle was properly assembled by the assembling company.
Product Liability Claim Costs
One of the biggest problems is that turning typical car wreck cases into product liability cases could make them too cost-prohibitive for people to bring a claim to recover for injuries and damages. Product liability cases are expensive to pursue and typically require expert testimony—an expense the law does not usually allow recovery for in a personal injury case. It simply will not make sense for someone to spend $10,000, $20,000 even $100,000 on an expert when the case is a fender bender.
When an accident attorney decides whether to take a case, she must balance the anticipated costs with the likely verdict. If the injuries are worth less than six figures, then the cost of pursuing it makes taking a product liability case a bad gamble. It does not make sense to invest $50,000 in a case with only $85,000 in damages. The net $35,000 gain probably will not cover the bills, much less pay the attorney’s fees or compensate the client.
Additionally, comparative and contributory negligence laws in the United States often give the defendant the right to ask the jury to “apportion” responsibility among other negligent actors, including the injured victim himself. If liability can be reduced, thereby reducing the judgment, a lawyer will be less willing to invest money in the case because any liability apportioned to the victim reduces recovery.
Conclusion
Autonomous vehicles are a reality. They are here now if even only used in a delivery driver capacity. As these vehicles become more advanced, we can expect them to have widespread uses. Because no driver can be negligent, car wrecks may largely become expensive product liability claims. Because existing laws are inadequate, victims may find themselves out in the cold when trying to pursue a run-of-the-mill auto collision.
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