Suppliers’ Civil Liability for Damage Caused by Autonomous Vehicles: A Brazilian Perspective

This essay aims to analyze how Brazilian civil law interprets the suppliers’ responsibility for damage caused by autonomous vehicles. The study starts with the description of two hypothetical accident scenarios involving autonomous vehicles, and then seeks to identify the grounds that most aptly establish supplier liability in each context. The four grounds for liability referred to herein are (i) Articles 12 and 14 of the Consumer Defense Code, (ii) the sole paragraph of Article 927 of the Civil Code, (iii) Article 931 of the Civil Code and (iv) the risk-development theory. Once the four paths are applied to the two hypothetical incidents, the conclusion reached is that although the provisions considered do offer an overview of the “current state of the art” in Brazilian law regarding liability, they fail to provide conclusive solutions for determining supplier responsibility for damage caused by autonomous vehicles.