Every driver makes hundreds of daily driving decisions that, strictly speaking, break driving laws (for example, crossing the yellow line to pull around a double-parked vehicle). What company is going to program its driverless cars to break the law?
Will insurance policies for driverless cars cover the car itself? Or will they cover the owner of the vehicle? Or perhaps the technology company that controls the car’s routes? Who will be responsible if there is an accident? The individual owner or the the vehicle manufacturer? Or the company that designed the navigation system?
This is probably the biggest issue that will prevent or slow down the use of driverless cars. Unless they can ride on rails, there will be accidents, and there will be questions of liability.
(Via Why Driverless Cars Will Screech to a Stop | Observer.)