There are many potential advantages to new self-driving cars but there are still serious questions about the legal ramifications of accidents involving these cars. For example, in 2018 an Uber self-driving car hit and killed a pedestrian in Arizona. Who is at fault for this type of accident? Keep reading to find out what the complications of these arguments are. If you have been injured a pedestrian accident,1 contact The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker at 800-333-0000 for a free legal consultation.
The Specifics of the 2018 Pedestrian Accident
The National Transportation Safety Board issued a report about the accident in question and found that the pedestrian was pushing her bike across a street when she was hit by the self-driving car. The detection system on the car detected the woman six seconds before it hit her.
One second before impact, he determined that it should hit the brakes. However, the system was overridden by a program in which the vehicle manufacturer wanted the vehicle not to “overreact” to issues that could cause accidents by sudden breaking.
Rules Regarding Pedestrians in California
In California, pedestrians always have the right of way. Yes, pedestrians should cross at crosswalks but if they do not, it is still the responsibility of a driver to stop. Driers are required o exercise what is considered “reasonable care” to not injure anyone while driving. In most pedestrian accident cases, the driver is found at fault. The main exception is a case in which the pedestrian darted out into the street and the driver did not have time to cross.
If the companies that are making driverless cars do not carefully program their cars to understand that pedestrians have this right of way then we can expect to see many more accidents like this. The law is still out on how this will be viewed, but it is likely that if the accident was caused by faulty programming of the driverless car, the manufacturer and / or programmer could be found at fault, as well as the owner of the vehicle and the company that sold the vehicle.
Call an Attorney if You Are Injured or Lose a Loved One in Any Kind of Car Accident
No matter the specifics of the accident, if you are injured or lose a loved one due to another driver or party acting negligently then you should contact a personal injury attorney to find out what your options are. You can reach The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker at 800-333-0000 today to request a free legal consultation. We are happy to go over the basics of your case and give you guidance on where you can go from here. Call now and we can begin immediately.
