Self-driving cars and the autonomous vehicle industry have long been championed as a way of making roads safer. In this respect, self-driving is a natural fit for the ridesharing sector, which has also touted ridesharing’s ability to reduce drunk driving. And, to this end, Uber and Lyft have both ramped up their self-driving efforts in the hopes of gaining significant market share in this growing sector.
Uber recently entered into a $500 million partnership with Toyota to further their self-driving ambitions, and Lyft has surpassed 5,000 completed self-driving rides as of August 2018. While these major ridesharing companies are clearly invested in self-driving technology, so-called autonomous vehicles have had their fair share of high-profile accidents.
The first fatal self-driving car accident involving Uber occurred in March of 2018, which created a wave of negative publicity. Similar self-driving accidents have led to opinion polls suggesting that Americans are not yet ready to accept self-driving rideshare vehicles as a norm.
In spite of these high-profile accidents, a recent study suggests that people may be the cause of most autonomous vehicle accidents in California.
Is Human Action Responsible for Most Autonomous Vehicle Accidents?
Axios reporting has attempted to categorize California autonomous vehicle accidents in recent years by segmenting whether the accident took place in an autonomous or conventional driving mode. The Axios report relied on incident reports over a five-year period from the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
An analysis of these incidents revealed that, out of 62 accidents that occurred in autonomous mode, the vehicle itself was responsible for only one out of 62 accidents. Drivers of other vehicles were far more responsible, based on the Axios findings.
In a conventional operating mode controlled by a human driver, the autonomous vehicle was responsible for 6 out of 26 reported accidents (less than 25%).
What to Make of the Axios Report’s Data
Since self-driving cars are, at present, far less common on the road than traditional vehicles, there is not a great deal of data available on accident liability involving self-driving cars. Still, the Axios data is helpful insofar as it suggests that, so long as millions of traditional vehicles are operating on California roads, traditional car accident liability will factor into personal injury claims.
Self-driving cars were responsible for a minority of the accidents in the Axios report, but autonomous vehicle responsibility was still fairly common. This, then, serves as a reminder that self-driving accident victims will be entitled to legal compensation based on a vehicle’s shortcomings.
If you or a loved one has been injured in an Uber or Lyft self-driving car accident, it is important to speak with a personal injury attorney who will review the facts in order to ascertain all legally liable parties. A self-driving car accident presents complex fact patterns due to the relative novelty of autonomous vehicles on the road.
Our team of California self-driving car accident lawyers at The Ledger Law Firm will protect your right to legal compensation after a self-driving car accident. Contact us online for a free case evaluation with a California autonomous vehicle accident attorney at Ledger Law today.
