Latest Personal Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
‘Self-Driving’ Doesn’t Mean ‘Hands-Free’ – Lessons of Tesla Autopilot Crash in China
Aug 15 2016 // Tesla said last week that one of its cars had crashed in Beijing while in ‘autopilot’ mode, with the driver contending sales staff sold the function as ‘self-driving’, overplaying its actual...
Suit against Seattle Law Enabling Uber Drivers to Unionize Tossed by Judge
Aug 11 2016 // A judge has dismissed the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s lawsuit against Seattle’s new ordinance that gives drivers for ridesharing companies the ability to unionize over pay and working conditions. The Seattle...
New York Warns Against Selfies While Driving
Aug 10 2016 // Authorities are warning N.Y. drivers against taking selfies, citing a national review suggesting they are among the most likely to do it. It’s generally illegal except in an emergency to use a handheld mobile device...
Urmson Leaves as Head of Google’s Self-Driving Car Project
Aug 9 2016 // Chris Urmson, chief technical officer of Google’s self-driving car efforts, said he’s leaving as the Internet company moves the project from research into the creation of products. “I am ready for a fresh...
Start-Up Otto in Fast Lane to Test Self-Driving Trucking by Year’s End
Aug 8 2016 // Self-driving trucking start-up Otto is poised to put its software in the hands of long-haul truckers by the end of this year for testing, its co-founders said on Thursday. Otto, co-founded by Google car and map project...
Alabama Driver Sentenced to 30 Years for Fatal High-Speed Crash
Aug 5 2016 // A man in Blount County, Alabama, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for going more than 100 miles per hour in a 2014 crash that killed one of his passengers. Al.com reports that 25-year-old Tyler L. Reynolds was...
Boston Police Chief Disappointed Ridesharing Bill Lacks Driver Fingerprinting
Aug 3 2016 // Boston Police Commissioner William Evans is faulting Massachusetts lawmakers for failing to require the fingerprinting of drivers for ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft. The House and Senate approved regulations...
Uber Insists If Arbitration Pact Is Nixed, $100M Driver Settlement Is Dead
Aug 1 2016 // Uber Technologies Inc.’s message to the judge who must approve its $100 million settlement with drivers is clear: take it or leave it. In an escalating game of courtroom brinkmanship, Uber has hit what may be an...
Driver’s Response to GPS Turns Car On End
Aug 1 2016 // Police in Vermont say a car ended up almost vertical when the driver swerved quickly in response to her GPS ordering her to “turn around.” The car was suspended almost vertically on guy wires attached to a...
Vermont Police Say Drunken Driver Who Crashed Was Playing Pokemon Go
Jul 27 2016 // Vermont State Police say a drunken driver was playing “Pokemon Go” on his cellphone when he crashed his car. Officers responded to a report of a crash at an intersection in Rutland Town at around 8:15 a.m. last...
Pen Underwriting Names Scott as Head of Cyber Liability, Driving Cyber Growth
Jul 26 2016 // Pen Underwriting announced that Adrian Scott has been appointed to the newly created role of head of Cyber Liability. Scott takes responsibility for enhancing Pen Underwriting’s capabilities in cyber risk management...
Study Suggests Ways to Identify Unsafe Driving in Older Adults
Jul 25 2016 // It is estimated that nearly half of all drivers on the nation’s roads are over the age of 65 and this number is projected to increase to 77 percent in the next 30 years, a recently published study says. Additionally,...
Insurers Work to Educate Consumers on the Evolving Dangers of Distracted Driving & Walking
Jul 25 2016 // We have all seen the stories in the news. After many years of a declining trend in the number of accidents, the number of accidents has spiked in the last two years. Insurers have an opportunity to educate the public and...
SoftBank & Honda Aim to Develop Talking Cars that Read a Driver’s Emotions
Jul 21 2016 // On the heels of its $32 billion takeover of chip designer ARM Holdings, SoftBank Corp. founder Masayoshi Son is embarking on another “crazy idea”: talking cars that can read a driver’s emotions. The...
Takata Settles Airbags Lawsuit With Florida Driver’s Estate
Jul 19 2016 // Takata Corp. agreed to settle a lawsuit in Florida with the estate of a driver of a Honda Civic who claimed to have been left a quadriplegic because of a dangerous airbag in the vehicle. Terms of the settlement...
Drivers Take Uber to UK Tribunal in Test Case that Could Threaten Business Model
Jul 19 2016 // Two drivers took Uber to a British employment tribunal on Tuesday, arguing that the ride service is acting unlawfully by not offering rights such as holiday and sick pay, in a test case that could force the app to change...
Who is an “Insured” in the Homeowners’ and Personal Auto Policy
Jul 18 2016 // Just because a person lives in the house does not mean he is an insured under the Homeowners’ (HO) or Personal Auto Policy (PAP). Nor does an individual necessarily have to live in the household to be insured on...
Man Playing Pokemon Go While Driving in NY Crashes Car Into Tree
Jul 18 2016 // A man is recovering from minor injuries he suffered when he crashed his brother’s car into a tree in central New York while playing Pokemon Go on his smartphone. Police in Auburn in the Finger Lakes region tell The...
Truck Driver in Deadly Georgia Crash Gets 5 Year Prison Sentence
Jul 18 2016 // A Louisiana truck driver charged in a fiery interstate crash that killed five nursing students in southeast Georgia was sentenced to prison Thursday – one year for each life lost – after he pleaded guilty to...
Research Shows Dangers of Using Hands-Free Cell Phones While Driving
Jul 15 2016 // Driving while talking on a hands-free phone can be as distracting as talking on a hand-held mobile, according to researchers at the University of Sussex in England. “A popular misconception is that using a mobile...
