The mass adoption of autonomous trucks could transform the trucking insurance industry
Autonomous trucks have the potential to reshape how we think about insurance in several ways. Autonomous trucks use advanced sensors and software to navigate roads and avoid collisions, reducing the risk of accidents caused by driver error. This could lead to a reduction in insurance premiums for trucking companies that adopt autonomous trucks. In the event of an accident involving an autonomous truck, liability could shift from the driver to the manufacturer or technology provider responsible for the autonomous system. This could have significant implications for insurance policies, which would need to be updated to reflect these new liability structures.
Additionally, autonomous trucks generate large amounts of data on their operations, including driving behavior, maintenance history, and cargo details. This data could be used by insurers to develop more accurate and personalized underwriting models for trucking companies, based on their specific risk profiles. More commonly referenced by critics of the technology, autonomous trucks are vulnerable to cyber attacks that could compromise their autonomous systems and lead to accidents. Insurers would need to develop new policies to address these cybersecurity risks, including coverage for losses related to hacking or other malicious activities.
A proposed bill, dubbed the Fair Compensation for Truck Crash Victims Act, could significantly impact the trucking industry by raising the minimum liability insurance from $750,000 to $5 million—a hefty 566% increase.