Latest Personal Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Pricing Insurance to Reflect Distracted Driving Risk
Apr 24 2018 // Insurance companies are finally putting a price on the risk of distracted driving, and it’s relatively cheap. Last year, a ticket for using a mobile phone while driving added $226 to the average insurance policy, an...
Massachusetts Rail System Addressing Engineers With Bad Driving Records
Apr 23 2018 // Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker is taking steps ensure that commuter rail engineers with poor personal driving records aren’t putting passengers’ safety at risk. The Boston Globe reports the Republican...
Data Show Rise in Fatal Car Crashes on 4/20 Marijuana ‘Holiday’
Apr 16 2018 // Marijuana users’ self-proclaimed holiday is linked with a slight increase in fatal U.S. car crashes, an analysis of 25 years of data found. The study lacks evidence on whether pot was involved in any of the April 20...
Data Show Rise in Fatal Car Crashes on 4/20 Marijuana ‘Holiday’
Apr 16 2018 // Marijuana users’ self-proclaimed holiday is linked with a slight increase in fatal U.S. car crashes, an analysis of 25 years of data found. The study lacks evidence on whether pot was involved in any of the April 20...
Uber Drivers Are Not Employees Under Federal Law, Judge Rules
Apr 13 2018 // A U.S. judge in Philadelphia has ruled that limousine drivers for Uber Technologies Inc. are independent contractors and not the company’s employees under federal law, the first ruling of its kind on a crucial issue...
Tesla Insists Driver to Blame for Fatal Crash; Family Hires Lawyer
Apr 12 2018 // Tesla Inc. again placed blame for a fatal crash involving a Model X last month on the driver as the man’s family hires a firm to explore legal options. The March 23 death of Walter Huang happened on a clear day, with...
Police: GPS Failed to Warn Bus Driver Before New York Overpass Crash
Apr 11 2018 // The out-of-state driver of a charter bus full of high school students that crashed into a low-hanging overpass on a Long Island parkway was using a non-commercial GPS device that didn’t warn him about the hazard in...
State-by-State Study Shows Drivers Are Texting More Despite Bans
Apr 10 2018 // If you’re driving right now, it’s far more likely you are reading this on your phone than you would have been a year ago. Despite a harrowing surge in traffic fatalities, American drivers appear to be getting...
Rhode Island Monitoring App Could Save Drivers on Car Insurance
Apr 10 2018 // A new auto insurance company in Rhode Island is rewarding drivers with cheaper rates based off how they drive. The catch is that policyholders have to allow HiRoad Assurance Company to track them in a cellphone app. The...
Judge Dismisses State Farm Car Crash Suit Against Mississippi U.S. Senate Appointee
Apr 10 2018 // A lawsuit against U.S. Senate appointee Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi has been permanently dismissed. The Daily Leader reports Mississippi Circuit Judge David Strong dismissed the case with prejudice April 3. That means...
Staged Car Crashes in South Carolina a Growing Problem
Apr 2 2018 // Officials in South Carolina say a rising number of staged automobile crashes are becoming a problem in the state. The Post and Courier of Charleston cited authorities who said faked crashes were part of a scam that...
More Relatives of Victim of Uber Driverless Car Crash Hire Lawyer
Apr 1 2018 // More family members of a woman killed by an Uber Technologies Inc. self-driving vehicle have hired legal counsel, indicating the ride services firm’s legal problems may not be over in the first fatality caused by an...
Arizona Governor Halts Uber’s Self-Driving Car Testing
Mar 27 2018 // The governor of Arizona has suspended Uber’s ability to test self-driving cars on public roads in the state following a fatal crash last week that killed a 49-year-old pedestrian. The decision to block Uber...
More than 50,000 British Drivers Initiate ‘Dieselgate’ Suit Against VW
Mar 27 2018 // Lawyers for more than 50,000 British car owners kicked off a lawsuit against Volkswagen in London’s High Court on Tuesday in a battle for compensation over a diesel emissions scandal that has engulfed Europe’s...
Georgia Close to Passing Distracted Driving Bill
Mar 27 2018 // Georgia is one step closer to joining 15 other states that have already made it illegal to hold a cellphone while driving. By a non-unanimous voice vote, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved a bill by...
Chinese Tech Giant Baidu to Test Self-Driving Cars in Beijing
Mar 23 2018 // China’s capital city has given the green light to tech giant Baidu Inc to test self-driving cars on city streets, an important step as the country looks to bolster its position in the global race for autonomous...
Uber’s Self-Driving Cars Insured by Old Republic
Mar 22 2018 // Old Republic International Corp., the Chicago-based insurer, provides commercial liability coverage of as much as $5 million for each of Uber Technologies Inc.’s self-driving vehicles. The policy covers bodily...
Driving in Snow: Difficult for Humans and Driverless Cars
Mar 22 2018 // A Canadian town known for its annual theater festival is emerging as a hub of “snowtonomous” research, as automakers face demands to produce self-driving cars that can perform in snow and sleet. But testing...
Arizona Sees No Need to Tighten Rules on Self-Driving Cars After Uber Fatality
Mar 21 2018 // Arizona officials said on Tuesday they saw no immediate need to tighten rules on the testing of self-driving cars in the state in reaction to a fatal accident involving an Uber autonomous vehicle that has focused attention...
NuTonomy Temporarily Halts Self-Driving Tests After Boston Asks
Mar 21 2018 // Self-driving startup NuTonomy halted its pilot tests on Boston’s public roads after city officials requested a pause following the death of a pedestrian struck by a self-driving Uber Technologies Inc. vehicle in...
