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Baidu's autonomous driving travel service platform "LuoBoKuaiPao" frequently appears in hot searches. When autonomous driving cars are getting closer and closer to people's lives, how to insure such cars has also become a question for the public. Autonomous driving cars have no drivers. In case of a traffic accident, who is responsible? Who will insure? What kind of protection can insurance companies provide? Today, autonomous driving has become a reality, and it is foreseeable that the auto insurance industry will also change in the future.

Autonomous driving has been operated in many places

At present, "LuoBo KuaiPao" has been put into operation in 11 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Wuhan, and has limited the operating area. For safety reasons, passengers are not allowed to sit in the front row of "LuoBo KuaiPao" vehicles, and a maximum of 3 people can sit together in the back row.

On July 7, a Wuhan netizen posted a video on a short video platform, saying that a self-driving taxi "Robot Run" collided with a pedestrian on the streets of Wuhan. On July 8, a relevant person in charge of Baidu responded, "The accident was caused by a slight contact between the vehicle and a pedestrian who ran a red light when the green light was on. After the accident, our company immediately cooperated with the police to deal with it and accompanied the patient to the hospital for examination. He is currently under further observation and resting in the hospital."

Ms. Wang, a passenger who once rode on a "Lobo Kuaipao" vehicle, told the Beijing Youth Daily that she was not worried about safety issues because "the speed of the vehicle is a bit slow" and it operates within a certain range. If an emergency occurs, she can click the SOS button on the screen to contact manual processing.

"Turnip Run" has a risk warning in the travel service agreement, that is, the autonomous driving technology is still in the stage of testing, verification and gradually opening up demonstration travel services. Compared with human driving, autonomous driving has greater uncertainty and may also face higher risks. The warning states that during the use of the "Turnip Run" service, in addition to the inherent risks such as traffic accidents that passengers may face when riding in ordinary vehicles, there may also be unique risks related to autonomous driving, including but not limited to the following: First, the risk of traffic accidents due to unique and diverse travel scenarios that cannot be overcome or covered by the hardware, software or technical level of autonomous driving; second, the risk of traffic accidents or other safety risks caused or aggravated by the quality or design defects of the autonomous driving system; third, the risk of physical or psychological discomfort or even adverse reactions caused by the violent braking, acceleration, shaking, sharp turns and other operations of the autonomous driving vehicle; fourth, the risk of vehicle loss of control caused by unexpected events or force majeure events such as network failure, communication service interruption, computer virus, hacker attack, power failure, etc.

The travel service agreement also states, "Despite the above risks, we will work hard to improve the services of this platform and do our utmost to protect the personal and property safety of you and your companions."

Who is responsible if a traffic accident occurs?

In November 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, together with four other departments, issued the "Guidelines for the Implementation of the Pilot Program for Access and Road Use of Intelligent Connected Vehicles (Trial)", which clearly stated that if the intelligent connected vehicle party bears the compensation liability according to law, the pilot user shall bear the liability; if the pilot automobile manufacturers, autonomous driving system development units, infrastructure and equipment providers, safety officers and other relevant entities are at fault for the occurrence of a traffic accident, the pilot user may seek compensation according to law.

In terms of compensation, the "Implementation Guidelines" clearly state that if a vehicle causes personal injury, death, or property damage in a road traffic accident when the autonomous driving system function is activated, the insurance company shall compensate within the insurance liability limit; for the part that is insufficient, the compensation liability of each party shall be determined in accordance with Article 76 of the "Road Traffic Safety Law of the People's Republic of China".

The insurance responsibilities may vary depending on the insurance companies underwriting in different places, but the main insurance types include commercial third-party liability insurance, vehicle liability insurance, vehicle damage insurance, carrier liability insurance, etc.

In addition, some details in the "Beijing Autonomous Driving Vehicle Regulations (Draft for Comments)" are more clear. For example, if an autonomous driving vehicle commits a traffic violation while driving on the road, the public security traffic management department will handle and identify it in accordance with the current road traffic safety laws and regulations. If there is a driver in the car, the driver will be dealt with according to law; if there is no driver in the car, the vehicle owner and manager will be dealt with.

The regulations for handling accident scenes are as follows: if an autonomous vehicle breaks down or causes a traffic accident on the road, and there is a driver in the car, the driver shall stop the car immediately and protect the scene; if personal injury or death occurs, the driver shall immediately rescue the injured and call the police quickly. If there is no driver in the car, the (remote) safety officer shall call the police immediately, and the vehicle owner and manager shall protect the scene and rescue the injured. For accidents that only cause minor property losses, if the parties have no dispute over the facts and causes, they can negotiate and handle it on their own.

Regarding the determination of liability for traffic accidents, if a vehicle is involved in a road traffic accident when the automatic driving system function is not activated, the liability shall be borne in accordance with the current regulations. If a vehicle is involved in a road traffic accident when the automatic driving system function is activated, causing personal injury, death, or property damage, if it is the responsibility of the automatic driving car, the vehicle owner and manager shall bear the compensation liability. After the vehicle owner and manager compensate the victim in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, they may seek compensation from the responsible producer, seller, etc. in accordance with the law. If a crime is constituted, the criminal liability of the relevant responsible persons shall be investigated in accordance with the law. If a vehicle is involved in a road traffic accident when the automatic driving system function is activated, causing personal injury, death, or property damage, if it is the responsibility of the automatic driving car, the vehicle owner and manager shall bear the compensation liability.

Who will provide insurance when there is no driver?

From a technical perspective, no obvious safety issues have been found so far, and no serious traffic accidents have occurred. There are more than 400 Turnip Run vehicles in operation in Wuhan, serving an area of ​​more than 3,000 square kilometers, covering a population of 7.7 million, making it the world's largest driverless service area. "Turnip Run" makes people feel that the era of fully autonomous vehicles is getting closer and closer to us.

When there is no driver in an autonomous vehicle, who will insure it? The Notice on Carrying out Pilot Work on Access and Road Traffic of Intelligent Connected Vehicles has made it clear that the pilot users of intelligent connected vehicles should purchase insurance for their vehicles, apply for registration, monitor the vehicle's operating status, and strengthen vehicle operation safety protection in accordance with regulations.

A reporter from Beijing Youth Daily learned that, at present, part of the "Carrot and Carrot" autonomous driving insurance business in Beijing is underwritten by China Life Property & Casualty Insurance Beijing Branch. "In accordance with relevant policies of Beijing, in addition to compulsory traffic insurance, the insurance company provides each test vehicle with a third-party insurance of 5 million yuan, 2 million yuan of vehicle liability insurance and vehicle damage insurance." China Life Property & Casualty Insurance insures the "Carrot and Carrot" autonomous driving vehicles in Beijing as non-commercial vehicles, on the grounds that these vehicles are still in the testing phase, most people are using them for experience, and the platform only charges a symbolic fee.

In addition, the Wuhan Municipal Transportation Administration and relevant departments also stated that "LuoBo KuaiPao" is still in the testing phase and has not yet been officially classified as an operating vehicle.

How will autonomous driving affect insurance?

Autonomous driving has become a reality on the road, and we can expect changes in the auto insurance industry. Although auto insurance premiums are still calculated in the traditional way, this potential change in liability may have a significant impact in the future. With the advancement and development of technology, the risks covered by traditional auto insurance may drop significantly, and traditional auto insurance will face changes.

In February 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission and 11 other ministries jointly issued the "Intelligent Vehicle Innovation and Development Strategy", which clarified the concept of intelligent vehicles for the first time. It mentioned that by 2025, my country will be able to achieve large-scale production of intelligent vehicles with conditional autonomous driving, and realize the market application of highly autonomous intelligent vehicles in specific environments.

Chen Hui, director of the China Actuarial Science and Technology Laboratory at the Central University of Finance and Economics, believes that autonomous driving technology has now entered the highly active driving stage. With the development of autonomous driving technology, the attribution of insurance liability risks for automobiles will shift from the driver to entities inside and outside the car. This also means that autonomous driving technology, as another major revolution in the field of transportation technology, is transforming and subverting traditional automobile insurance.

Industry insiders said that it was obvious that the company operating the "Carrot Run" was responsible for insurance in this case. However, in the future, if an individual buys a self-driving car, it is not clear whether it will be insured by the car manufacturer or the car owner.

Many property and casualty insurance companies have made it clear in their annual reports that they will reserve core technologies in new auto insurance segments such as autonomous driving insurance in the future, promote product and service innovation, meet the diverse needs of customers, and promote the high-quality development of auto insurance business. The insurance industry is actively researching intelligent connected car insurance for autonomous driving, providing comprehensive protection based on the needs of customers, OEMs and technology companies to adapt to the future development trend of the automotive industry.

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Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Lin Lishuang

Editor/Fan Hongwei