Civil Liability for Motor Vehicle Crashes in the United States: From Conventional Vehicles to Autonomous Vehicles

As of June 1, 2020, thirty-five states and the District of Columbia have enacted statutes expressly addressing autonomous vehicles. These regulations largely address the preconditions for operating autonomous vehicles, including rules that govern operators and technical features of the automated driving systems. Only a few states have established independent frameworks for determining liability in the event of a crash. Federal legislation governing autonomous vehicles has yet to be enacted, but developments thus far strongly suggest that federal regulations will ultimately determine the important safety performance standards required of autonomous vehicles. Federal law is supreme over state law, and so federal regulations will preempt any conflicting state law requirements and immunize a compliant autonomous vehicle from tort liability. However, if a vehicle does not comply with an applicable federal safety standard and crashes as a result, the responsible party will be subject to state tort liability for the injuries. But until federal legislation or regulation has been enacted, state law will wholly govern the space. In the absence of state legislation, state tort law will determine liability for the crash of an autonomous vehicle. In the vast majority of states, manufacturers will be subject to strict products liability for any defects that cause their vehicles to crash.