How Autonomous Features Are Changing Liability on the Road

Who is to blame when a car with no driver crashes?

Fault was once straightforward. Two cars collide, one driver is negligent, and blame rests firmly on them. Autonomous vehicles have turned that upside down. These days the “driver” could be a computer, software manufacturer, or out-of-state fleet operator.

And that changes everything about who pays when things go wrong.

Self-driving features are already driving on our roads today. Newer models with additional autonomous features are released each month. The issue is the law has not caught up to the technology. Determining liability after an accident where no one was driving can become messy quickly.

For that reason, anyone injured in one of these accidents should consult with a car accident lawyer in Minneapolis prior to speaking with any insurance companies. Determining liability in a car accident involving autonomous technology differs from your typical car accident.

Let’s break it all down…

What’s Inside This Guide:

1. Why Autonomous Cars Make Fault So Messy

2. Who Can Actually Be Held Responsible

3. The Numbers Behind Self-Driving Crashes

4. What This Means For Minnesota Drivers

Why Autonomous Cars Make Fault So Messy

Here’s the thing about a normal car crash…

Someone messed up. Perhaps they ran a stoplight. Perhaps they were texting. Regardless, blame rests with a human being behind the wheel.

Self-driving cars break that simple rule.

If a car is driving itself, you no longer have control. You’ve placed your control in the car. And the car is composed of thousands of parts made by thousands of companies. Any one of those could have failed and caused the crash.

That means one accident can have multiple defendants that are all partially at fault:

• The person behind the wheel (if there was one)

• The company that built the vehicle

• The software provider that wrote the code

• The fleet operator running the service

Things become even more complicated because there aren’t federal regulations to govern the industry. Currently, there isn’t a nationwide standard that specifies who is liable when technology malfunctions. Every scenario can unfold in different ways based on state laws, presented evidence, and vehicle make/model.

Pretty complicated, right?

Who Can Actually Be Held Responsible

So who ends up paying? It depends on what went wrong.

The majority of autonomous vehicle accident claims would be filed under what’s known as product liability law. That’s completely different than your average auto accident. For example, someone behind the wheel of the vehicle caused a wreck. But if your car is driving itself, did the crash occur due to a manufacturing issue, programming error, faulty sensors, or defective design?

Here are the main players:

• The manufacturer: If something on the car was defective (faulty braking or sensors, for example), the company that made it can be held responsible.

• The software developer: If the code erred in judgment, misinterpreted a risk, or didn’t correctly anticipate what a human driver would do.

• The human driver: Vehicles with driver-assist technology (ones that aren’t fully self-driving yet) will likely still place responsibility on the human if they need to intervene but do not.

• The fleet operator: Businesses offering robotaxi services may be liable for the maintenance and operation of their vehicles.

Disclaimer: This isn’t something to determine on your own. Each of these incidents require extensive forensic examination of the vehicle’s hardware and software. Sensor information, telemetry, and software logs can all be deleted if someone doesn’t act quickly to preserve them.

That is why the first hours after a crash matter so much.

The Numbers Behind Self-Driving Crashes

Now let’s look at some real data.

You’d think vehicles without drivers would be involved in fewer crashes. However, statistics show mixed results. Crash statistics show that self-driving vehicles are involved in 9.1 crashes per million miles traveled. Human-driven vehicles are only involved in 4.1 crashes per million miles. This means there are over twice as many autonomous vehicle crashes.

But here’s the important part…

Most involve minor collisions. Many occur when a human-operated vehicle rear ends an autonomous vehicle. And when you consider who’s truly at fault for the collision, things change once more. According to an analysis of NHTSA data, self-driving vehicles were completely responsible for just 4% of crashes with other motorists.

Cars themselves are seldom at fault for causing the crash. However, when something fails, determining liability is a legal nightmare.

There will be more of these crashes as these vehicles become more prevalent on the roads. Reported crashes are increasing each month. The more vehicles there are, the more crashes will occur. There will be more complicated liability issues as a result.

What This Means for Minnesota Drivers

You might be thinking this is a California problem. It’s not.

Autonomous vehicles are headed to Minnesota roads. Waymo started testing its driverless cars in Minneapolis late in 2025 and hopes to eventually offer full rider service in the Twin Cities.

Here’s the catch…

Minnesota currently has no laws pertaining to self-driving cars. Our state statutes neither permit nor forbid these vehicles, leaving drivers and passengers vulnerable under the law. Legislation has been proposed on the topic, though none have successfully worked their way through a legislative committee.

That gray area causes tremendous problems for victims of crashes. Depending on the facts of the case, a totally automated crash may become either a product liability lawsuit, a traditional accident case, or a complicated mix of the two. If you can’t tell what kind of case you have, you can’t know who is at fault.

This is why legal help matters more than ever with these crashes.

Wrapping This Up

Self-driving technology is revolutionizing the roadways. Unfortunately, it’s also rewriting the liability playbook as we know it.

To quickly recap what we covered:

• Autonomous cars remove agency from humans, creating difficulties in defining fault

• Blame can be assigned to the manufacturer, the programmer, the driver, or the fleet operator

• They get into crashes more frequently but are seldom the cause

• Minnesota still has no clear laws, leaving victims in a tricky spot

The reality is that when an accident occurs with a self-driving vehicle, it doesn’t behave like your typical wreck. The evidence isn’t the same. The responsible parties aren’t the same. And the law needs to learn how to keep up.

When you or a loved one are injured in an accident with a self-driving car, you shouldn’t have to dig through those layers yourself. Act fast, preserve the evidence and seek qualified legal counsel. It can mean everything.