Insurance must evolve with driverless technology

Axa has warned that driverless cars will demand a new raft of insurance cover.

It believes cyber crime will be a serious issue with vehicles hacked to conduct criminal activity, or even to be used a weapon. Drivers could also see their vehicles commandeered by cyber criminals, with control only returned on payment of ransoms.

Axa said, ‘These are all new risks which insurers will need to consider as society moves towards autonomous vehicles. It will also mean that insurance policies offer the correct type of cyber cover. This will also be a challenge for the automotive industry, which will be required to build in new security features to their vehicles, covering issues previously not touched upon.’

Axa’s technical director David Williams added, ‘We should acknowledge that there are unknowns with driverless cars, such as cyber security, and it is understandable that people may have a healthy scepticism of them.

‘However, the many potential benefits, from lives saved through to climate change, present an overwhelmingly positive case for welcoming these technological developments.’