During the 2017 Automated Vehicles Symposium in San Francisco, Consumer Watchdog called on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to adopt enforceable federal safety standards for self-driving autonomous vehicles if the federal government fails to do so.
“No federal or state standards would leave us at the mercy of manufacturers as they rush to use our public highways as their private laboratories however they wish with no safety protections at all,” said John M. Simpson, Consumer Watchdog privacy project director.
Simpson stressed that regulations covering jurisdiction over licensing; enacting and enforcing traffic laws and regulations; and regulating vehicle insurance and liability must remain with the states.
“Lost in the hyperbole over robot cars is a realistic assessment of the likely costs to both consumers and taxpayers particularly over the coming decades, when robot cars and human drivers will share a ‘hybrid highway,'” said Simpson. “Simpson also reiterated Consumer Watchdog’s call for Congress to increase funding for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration so it has the resources necessary to enact safety performance standards and regulate self-driving robot cars.”
Under California’s initial autonomous vehicle testing regulations, 36 companies have obtained permits to test robot cars on public roads but all crash reports and disengagement reports much be filed to keep the public informed.
Last month Consumer Watchdog issued a report warning that robot cars operating without mandatory safety, security, privacy and ethical standards will pose unprecedented risks to the American public.
Six Consumer Watchdog principles Simpson believes should be adopted by government are:
- Protect the civil justice system.
- Enact stronger state consumer protections against insurance company abuses.
- Enact auto safety standards.
- Stronger laws are needed to protect consumers’ privacy.
- Bar federal interference in state consumer protection laws.
- Respect democratic and human values.
