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Businesses developing self-driving cars talk up the technology’s potential to improve road safety. They had better be right — for financial as well as humane reasons. They will bear most of the liability for crashes. Automotive groups have a long history of product recalls and compensation payouts for the failures of far simpler systems.
开发自动驾驶汽车的企业都在大肆宣传这项技术在改善道路安全方面的潜力。从经济和人道的角度来看，他们最好是正确的。他们将承担车祸的大部分责任。汽车集团在产品召回和为简单得多的系统故障支付赔偿方面有着悠久的历史。
Alphabet’s Waymo operates robotaxis in Arizona, Tesla works feverishly on “self-driving” modes and General Motors plans to deliver autonomous vehicles by mid-decade. The push has prompted the UK’s Law Commission to propose that users of self-driving cars should have immunity from a wide range of motoring offences, including dangerous driving.
Alphabet的Waymo在亚利桑那州运营机器人出租车，特斯拉(Tesla)正积极研发“自动驾驶”模式，通用汽车(General Motors)计划在十年中期推出自动驾驶汽车。这一举措促使英国法律委员会(Law Commission)提议，自动驾驶汽车的用户应享有一系列驾驶违法行为的豁免权，包括危险驾驶。
Car manufacturers have been accountable for defective vehicles since a row in the US over Ford Pinto fuel tank fires in the 1970s. The industry spent billions of dollars last decade recalling vehicles affected by the exploding airbags made by Japan’s Takata.
自上世纪70年代美国福特平托(Ford Pinto)油箱起火以来，汽车制造商一直要为有缺陷的汽车负责。该行业在过去10年里花费了数十亿美元召回受日本高田公司(Takata)安全气囊爆炸影响的汽车。
Liabilities for self-driving cars are less clear-cut. Owners will sometimes have to take the wheel in an emergency or in heavy rain. German lawmakers consider they should then be legally responsible. The Law Commission believes such carve-outs are unworkable.
无人驾驶汽车的责任则不那么明确。车主有时不得不在紧急情况或大雨中驾驶。德国议员认为他们应该承担法律责任。法律委员会认为这样的分割是行不通的。
Under the proposals, vehicle manufacturers or software developers will need sufficient funds to organise recalls and pay fines. That might stifle the emergence of innovative start-ups.
根据这些提案，汽车制造商或软件开发商将需要足够的资金来组织召回和支付罚款。这可能会扼杀创新型初创企业的成长。
Perhaps they could buy insurance? But self-driving cars would be a greater headache for Lloyd’s of London than other speciality lines. The risks in screeds of computer code are hard to assess. There are also cyber security issues. The International Underwriting Association of London raises the nightmare possibility of numerous accidents occurring simultaneously. That could pose a risk to insurers’ solvency, the IUA says.
也许他们可以买保险？但对于伦敦劳合社(Lloyd 's of London)来说，自动驾驶汽车将比其他专业汽车更让人头疼。冗长的计算机代码的风险很难评估。还有网络安全问题。伦敦国际承保协会(International Underwriting Association of London)提出了同时发生数起事故的可怕可能性。IUA说，这可能会给保险公司的偿付能力带来风险。
None of this will deter developers. China’s Geely plans to have autonomous vehicles by 2024. Volkswagen expects self-driving cars to transform the industry. It recently earmarked €89bn for electric vehicle and software development.
这些都不会阻止开发企业。中国吉利计划在2024年前推出自动驾驶汽车。大众预计自动驾驶汽车将改变整个行业。它最近专门拨出890亿欧元用于电动汽车和软件开发。
Carmakers will end up provisioning for claims raised by ambulance-chasing lawyers too. Asymmetries in blame culture make them vulnerable. Human errors produce 90 per cent of road traffic crashes. Only self-driving accidents attract world media coverage. As Tesla boss Elon Musk recently acknowledged, autonomous vehicle makers may not be rewarded for the lives they save. They should, though, expect to be punished for those that are lost.
汽车制造商也将最终为追随救护车的律师提出的索赔做好准备。归责文化中的不对称让他们变得脆弱。90%的道路交通事故是人为失误造成的。只有自动驾驶事故才会吸引世界媒体的报道。正如特斯拉老板埃隆•马斯克(Elon Musk)最近承认的那样，自动驾驶汽车制造商拯救的生命可能不会得到回报。不过，他们应该料到将为逝去的生命受到惩罚。
The Lex team is interested in hearing more from readers. Please tell us what you think of self-driving cars in the comments section below.
