Advanced, Automated and Electric Vehicle Law
Author: Alex Glassbrook, Barrister, Temple Garden Chambers
Advanced, Automated and Electric Vehicle Law
The era of advanced, automated and electric vehicles (AAEVs) has begun; the legal transformation is starting.
In July 2018, Parliament enacted the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018, legislating for electric vehicle charging and allowing a direct civil claim against the motor insurer of an automated, 'self-driving' vehicle. In May 2022, the UK government announced its intention to create a new legal category for e-scooters. In April 2023, a 'hands free' advanced driver assistance system was approved for use on certain motorways across England, Wales and Scotland.
On 8 November 2023 the Automated Vehicles Bill 2023-24 (HL Bill 1) had its first reading in Parliament.
Motor vehicle technologies have developed since the nineteenth century and have affected numerous aspects of our lives - from road safety to the environment, from the laws of negligence and contribution to the rules of compulsory insurance. As AAEV technologies proliferate, their effects are likely to spread further.
It describes the emerging laws of advanced, automated and electric vehicles in England and Wales, explaining:
- The insurance and liability reforms of the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018
- The wider regulatory reforms of the Automated Vehicles Bill 2023-24, set to become the Automated Vehicles Act 2024
- The range of legal practice areas affected by AAEVs, including discussions of the new public laws of vehicle safety, the actionability of downloaded software, electronic disclosure in civil litigation and the law of testing prototypes.
It will help those litigating, adjudicating, regulating and studying AAEV issues. It gives the context and detail of AAEV law in its many applications. It is a map to a fast-changing legal landscape.