Who Pays For Damages if Autonomous Self-Driving Cars Are Involved?

Who Pays For Damages if Autonomous Self-Driving Cars Are involved in Accidents
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Who Pays For Damages if Autonomous Self-Driving Cars Are involved in Accidents
In contemporary society, driving is quintessential and improves people's mobility. Currently, having a car is necessary since individuals need to go to work, shop, school, and visit places of interest. For an extended period since the invention of cars, humans have been used to driving themselves. Specifically, driving relies on human autonomy, which explains the controversy toward self-driving vehicles. However, car accidents are inevitable since even human drivers make poor decisions that lead to collisions. If human autonomy is removed, which is the case with autonomous self-driving cars, questions arise about who pays for the damage of vehicles when accidents happen. The paper focuses on who pays for the damage of autonomous self-driving cars in an accident. Should the insurance company, the driver, or the firm that created the software that malfunctioned be liable for the collision?
In particular, to answer who should pay for the damage of autonomous self-driving cars, a person should consider how the accident occurred. Insurance firms should provide two types of insurance for autonomous vehicles. If an accident occurs when the car is operating without a human driver due to a software malfunction, the manufacturer should be liable for the damages incurred (Bogart, 2017). In that light, the insurance company should look for the manufacturer to cover the damages. However, if an accident takes place when the autonomous car has a human driver behind the steering wheel, the driver should pay for the damages. If that happens, the insurance company can pay based on the type of insurance cover held by the car owner. As a result, determining who pays for the damage of autonomous cars depends on who was controlling the vehicle between the software and human driver.
Although autonomous self-driving vehicles are meant to improve safety, it does not mean that they will not be involved in road accidents. In April 2021, a Tesla car crashed near Houston and killed two occupants. Many individuals were faster to judge and said that Tesla's self-driving technology was ineffective. However, Elon Musk, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesla Company, said that the "Autopilot" feature was not enabled (Sagalow, 2021). Notably, Musk made it clear that even if the "Autopilot" feature was enabled, Tesla cars are not completely autonomous, meaning that they need active driver supervision. Based on utilitarianism morality theory, actions that promote good to the largest number of individuals should be supported. On that note, I would say that manufacturers of autonomous self-driving cars should be liable for the damage when accidents occur. Even when the driver is behind the steering wheel, the vehicle uses technologies to guide the person. As such, an accident might occur, especially if the...