NHTSA Orders Crash Reporting for Automated Vehicles

Recently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a press release about a Standard General Order requiring crash reporting for all vehicles equipped with Advanced Driver Assist Systems and Automated Driving Systems. The NHTSA is using its authority to gather additional information to “save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce the economic costs of roadway crashes through education, research, safety standards and enforcement activity”.

Last summer, NHTSA issued a Standing General Order requiring manufacturers and operators of vehicles equipped with SAE Level 2 advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) or SAE Levels 3-5 automated driving systems (ADS) to report crashes. This action will enable NHTSA to collect information necessary for the agency to play its role in keeping Americans safe on the highways, even as the technology deployed on the nation’s roads continues to evolve.

Under the new order, crashes will have to be reported under the following circumstances:

NHTSA’s order requires covered entities to report crashes that occur on public roads in the United States based on the following:

• • Within one day of learning of a crash, companies must report crashes involving a Level 2 ADAS or Levels 3-5 ADS-equipped vehicle that also involve a hospital-treated injury, a fatality, a vehicle tow-away, an air bag deployment, or a vulnerable road user such as a pedestrian or bicyclist. An updated report is due 10 days after learning of the crash.
• • Every month, companies must report all other crashes involving an ADS-equipped vehicle that involve an injury or property damage.
• • Reports must be updated monthly with new or additional information.
• Reports must be submitted for any reportable crash, about which a company receives notice, beginning 10 days after the company is served with the order.
• Reports must be submitted to NHTSA electronically using a form that requires important information regarding the crash. NHTSA will use this information to identify crashes for follow-up.
• The order requires vehicle and equipment (including software) manufacturers of Level 2 ADAS or Levels 3-5 ADS systems and vehicles and operators of ADS-equipped vehicles to report crashes where the Level 2 ADAS or Level 3-5 ADS system was engaged during or immediately before the crash.

Analyzing Data on Driverless Technologies

The steps taken and data collection is intended to will help the NHTSA to identify potential safety issues. The data will also help understand whether there is a pattern in driverless vehicle crashes or their operation. At this time, NHTSA is asking motorists who believe their vehicle may have a safety defect associated with automated driving systems to file a report.

If you have been injured or if you have lost a loved one in a car accident involving a vehicle with an automated driving system in anywhere in Michigan, contact the skilled and proven team at 248-352-2110 or toll free at 1-866-4447-3563 or complete our Contact Form to schedule a free no obligation consultation with a truck accident lawyer in Michigan. We give you the no win, no fee guarantee.