Ford May Not Have To Report Crash Data Under Trump

In recent years, much ado has been made about partially-autonomous driver-assistance systems, largely due to the fact that people tend to find ways to circumvent their built-in safety features. With many opting not to pay attention to the roads with these features activated even though they certainly aren’t capable of full autonomy just yet, we’ve seen some high-profile crashes occur as a result – prompting investigations from a variety of organizations such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Now, a new report indicates that Ford and other automakers may no longer be required to report certain crash data related to these systems moving forward.

According to Reuters, incoming president Donald Trump’s transition team reportedly wants to ditch current requirements for automakers to report crash reporting pertaining to these partially-automated systems as part of its 100-day automotive strategy policy, referring to this requirement as “excessive.” On the flip side, the NHTSA stated that collecting this crash data is a crucial component in its quest to ensure that emerging semi-autonomous technologies are indeed safe for U.S. roads.

Currently, the NHTSA requires automakers to report crashes if autonomous driving technologies or advanced driver-assistance systems were activated within 30 seconds of impact. Trump’s transition team is reportedly seeking to ditch that requirement, as well as “liberalize” existing autonomous tech regulations and introduce “basic regulations to enable development” for the entire industry.

This news would impact a number of automakers, including Tesla, which has faced NHTSA investigations into its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) features, as well as Ford, which is being investigated by the same agency following a handful of fatal crashes that occurred when BlueCruise was engaged. One of those crashes led to a number of serious charges being filed against the driver, including homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence and involuntary manslaughter.