UK considers removing insurance barriers for self-driving cars

Britain plans to present new insurance rules to guarantee victims of accidents involving self-driving cars are compensated rapidly in a bid to eliminate a major barrier for the nascent industry.

The introduction of self-driving automobiles has been obstructed by legal hurdles in a number of nations as insurance providers and legislators aim to establish who would eventually be responsible in case of an accident.

“We must ensure the public is safeguarded in the event of an incident and this week we are presenting the framework to allow insurance for these new innovations,” stated transport minister Chris Grayling.

A single insurance coverage product will be offered to cover a driver when an automobile is being used traditionally, in addition to when the vehicle is being used in autopilot mode, the transport ministry stated.

The British government aims to motivate the advancement and testing of autonomous driving innovation to develop an industry to serve a market it reckons could be worth around 900 billion pounds ($1.1 trillion) globally by 2025.

Latest accidents involving a self-driving Google and a Tesla model in auto-pilot mode have raised issues among some members of the public just as more autonomous cars are being checked on Britain’s streets.

Japanese automaker Nissan is going to test autonomous vehicles in London later this month after preliminary tests on public roads in the southern English town of Milton Keynes late in 2016.