China top court rules drivers responsible for assisted-driving vehicles
The ruling creates a nationwide legal benchmark that assigns road-safety responsibility to human drivers when assisted-driving functions are engaged.
Change
China's top court issued a ruling that drivers remain responsible for road safety in vehicles equipped with assisted-driving technology.
Why it matters
The court issued the decision as a "guiding case" establishing a nationwide benchmark. The reference case is a September ruling in Zhejiang where a driver surnamed Wang was jailed and fined for relying fully on an assisted-driving system while drunk and asleep. Wang installed a device to mimic a hand grip, set the car to drive, fell asleep in the passenger seat, and was found by police after the car stopped in the middle of the road. The ruling follows tightened safety rules after a high-profile crash last March and comes amid large investments by Chinese tech companies and carmakers in autonomous driving technology.
Implications
- — Courts apply the guiding case as a nationwide benchmark in assisted-driving liability cases.
- — Drivers using assisted-driving functions are legally accountable for maintaining road safety.
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