Driverless (self-driving) car accidents
More self-driving vehicles or fully driverless “autonomous” vehicles are beginning to populate California’s streets.
If a self-driving vehicle hits me in a car accident, who is at fault?
Fault in an auto accident that involves a driverless or self-driving car typically depends on many factors like if one (or more) of the cars involved has caused the accident by violating traffic laws.
There are three general parties that can be found at fault in most car accidents that involve a self-driving or driverless vehicle:
The driver of the normal car (not self-driving)
The manufacturer of the self-driving or driverless car
The operator of the self-driving or driverless car, if there is one.
In most cases, determining fault for who caused a car accident is based on negligence, which California law defines as the failure to use reasonable care to prevent harm to oneself or to others.
Drivers owe other drivers, pedestrians, and other people a “duty of care” (meaning people are legally obligated to prevent foreseeable harm to others when it is reasonable for them to do so).
Failure to use reasonable care when driving, which then causes a car accident, is negligence. Therefore if you are found to be negligent, you will likely also be found at fault.
Can multiple people be at fault for a car accident involving a self-driving car?
Multiple people can share fault for a car accident. This currently includes car accidents with self-driving or driverless vehicles. If more than one person or party is involved with causing the accident, the jury can choose how much each party shares the fault by assigning them a percentage that, when combined with all other parties, will add to 100%.
Depending on your state’s “comparative fault” laws, the process for determining fault and damages to award will vary.
In California, which is a “pure” comparative fault law state, someone can still pursue and recover partial damages even if they share blame for causing the accident. For example, if a driver is 90% at fault for the car accident and their resultant injuries, they may still pursue the other driver for 10% of the total damages they incurred.
Let’s review three different scenarios, to explore who may be at fault out of the 3 general parties of a self-driving car accident.
When the driver / operator of the autonomous vehicle is at fault for the car accident:
Most self-driving or driverless vehicles on the road still have a human driver behind the wheel. Autonomous vehicles generally are deployed onto the streets under a company’s pilot program that need human test drivers or operators who can take the wheel immediately in case of an emergency.
In California, under California Vehicle Code 38750(4), an “operator” would be defined as:
“the person who is seated in the driver’s seat, or, if there is no person in the driver’s seat, causes the autonomous technology to engage.”
CVC 38750 further establishes that autonomous vehicles must have a “safety alert system” to alert the operator if the vehicle detects that its autonomous driving system has had a failure. The operator must also be able to take full control of the vehicle and have access to the brake, accelerator, and steering wheel.
If the test driver does not take control during an emergency, they may be at fault for causing the accident. Additionally, if the operator takes control, but does something to cause a car accident, they may also be responsible. Lastly, if the self-driving / autonomous system is not being used or is being overridden, the test driver is driving the car like any other driver.
Many vehicles like Tesla cars have an autopilot system, which drivers may treat as a self-driving mode. Drivers would still be required to have the capability of taking control of the vehicle in case of an accident.
When the driver of the non-autonomous car is at fault for a car accident:
The driver of the normal car that is not autonomous may be at fault for causing the car accident. When any driver fails to take reasonable care while driving and causes an accident, they may be liable, even if the other vehicle involved was in a self-driving mode.
Drivers have a duty to watch out for pedestrians, obstacles, and their vehicles, including driverless vehicles.
Drivers also need to control their car’s speed and movement; failure to use reasonable care in causing an accident can be evidence of negligence, in accordance with CACI 700 (Judicial Council of California's Civil Jury Instructions).
Violating traffic laws can be evidence of negligence in causing an accident as well, such as doing the following:
Speeding
Drunk driving
Distracted driving
Driving with malfunctioning brake lights
Road rage
Failure to yield
Failure to stop at a traffic light
When the autonomous vehicle’s manufacturer is at fault for a car accident:
Many self-driving and driverless car accidents have been caused by failures in their autonomous driving systems. There are nearly countless reasons for defects to appear in self-driving and driverless vehicles, such as a software bug, failures in the systems, or failing to allow the operator to take proper control of the vehicle when needed.
Autonomous driving systems use a mixture of radar, cameras, sensors, and computers in the vehicle to control various functions of driving like speed, braking, and steering. Many companies are testing driverless vehicles on American roads now, such as Tesla, Google (Waymo), General Motors, and Uber.
Soule v. General Motors Corp. (1994) established California’s product liability laws to hold anyone who designs, manufactures, or sells a defective product strictly liable for injuries that product causes:
“A manufacturer, distributor, or retailer is liable in tort if a defect in the manufacture or design of its product causes injury while the product is being used in a reasonably foreseeable way.”
This means someone does not have to prove the company’s negligence in the event of a car accident, and only needs to demonstrate two things:
The product was dangerous
The product caused the car accident.
CACI series 1200 states that product liability for driverless and self-driving cars could involve the following kinds of defects:
Manufacturing defects
Design defects
Failure to warn defects
When a car accident that involved a driverless or self-driving car is proven to be caused by a manufacturing, design, or failure to warn defect, then the company behind the driverless or self-driving car may be held liable for the damages.
Does California have fully driverless vehicles yet?
Yes, California has begun accepting applications for fully driverless vehicles. Driverless test permits will allow fully autonomous cars without any human test drivers. Such driverless cars would also be allowed to go without steering wheels, gas and brake pedals, or mirrors under these test permits.
