Found: that the vehicle can safely and lawfully drive itself, it will be listed under the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act

Found: Adherence: Confirmation that the service complies with national and local laws (e.g., UK Automated and Electric Vehicles Act

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the regulatory changes required to enable the commercial deployment of autonomous ride-hailing services at scale in the UK, similar to those operating in cities including San Francisco, Phoenix and Los Angeles.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 (the Act) sets the foundation for enabling the safe deployment of self-driving vehicles on roads in Great Britain with full implementation of the Act planned for the second half of 2027.

Earlier this year, government announced the decision to accelerate implementation of the Automated Passenger Services permitting scheme to Spring 2026. This permitting scheme can help to facilitate pilots of commercial self-driving passenger services with no safety driver, from spring 2026. Any companies looking to deploy their vehicles will need to meet safety requirements and gain local authority consent.

The deployment of these services as self-driving vehicles is enabled through the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018. To be seen as self-driving, the vehicle must, in the opinion of the Secretary of State for Transport, be capable of safely driving themselves without human oversight or intervention for some or all of journey.

The Vehicle Certification Agency will undertake the assessment, on behalf of the Secretary of State, to assess whether a vehicle is capable of driving itself without human intervention.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of current legislation in ensuring that there is sufficient (a) liability and (b) responsibility in the case of a collision caused by an automated vehicle.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The framework in place today, established by the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018, provides a process for Secretary of State to list vehicles as "automated" and sets out that if a listed vehicle causes an accident while driving itself, liability will be placed directly onto the vehicle's insurer. This provides victims with a clear and single point of contact for compensation.

The insurer’s liability may be limited where the injured party’s actions contributed to the accident. And after compensating the victim, the Act also gives the insurer the right to bring a claim against the party at fault for the accident, for example the vehicle manufacturer.

Vehicles piloted under the Automated Passenger Services (APS) permitting scheme will be listed under the 2018 Act if in the Secretary of State’s opinion they can safely and legally drive themselves for at least part of the journey without being monitored by a safety driver. Subject to consultation outcomes, the Automated Passenger Services permitting scheme is expected to be in place from Spring 2026.

Once the Automated Vehicles Act 2024 is fully in force, which we expect to happen in the second half of 2027, listing decisions will be replaced by the Secretary of State’s decisions as to whether to authorise vehicles. As with listing, vehicles will only be authorised if the Secretary of State is satisfied that the vehicles can safely and legally drive themselves. The rest of the provisions of the 2018 Act will continue to apply so that the insurer will be liable if an authorised vehicle causes an accident when driving itself.