A self-certification of autonomous vehicles (AV) process backed by the National Transport Commission (NTC) is not rigorous enough to prevent serious safety breaches and, if introduced, must be compensated for in subsequent regulatory stages, IAG warns.

In order for insurers to offer protection, solid regulation and a sharing of data and information is vital so insurers can price products, a new submission to the Federal Government-funded NTC from IAG Research & Technology Director Cecilia Warren says.

“We do not believe that the self-certification process chosen for the importation/first supply stage of regulation is strict enough to prevent serious safety breaches occurring,” Ms Warren said.

“However, we know self-certification is the endorsed approach. As such, we recommend that the next level of regulation - in-service regulation - will need to be at the highest safety standard possible to compensate.”

IAG wants the in-service regulator to monitor the Automated Driving System Entity (ADSE) for “ongoing compliance” against the self-certification criteria completed at first supply.

“This would ensure every ADSE operating in Australia continually complies with the conditions of their certification,” Ms Warren said.

IAG’s new submission urges the NTC to consider seven key areas when implementing the AV regulatory framework:

• Repairing ADS: IAG is concerned insurer repairs would be considered an “aftermarket modification” and AV customers would be forced to seek repairs from the manufacturer, denting competition. It wants a mandatory scheme requiring manufacturers to share information needed to repair and service ADS and AVs with independent repairers.
  
  
• Sharing technical information about ADS with insurers: IAG says it must be mandated that ADSEs share information, ideally via a standardised interface. “The ADSEs would then need to share a copy of their proprietary information in this format so insurers can compare ADSs and be able to assess the risk of each ADS.”
  
  
• Liability: IAG says the term “reasonably practicable” used by the NTC in the in-service regulation of AV technology and ADS was a “too low” a threshold when it related to a fleet of AVs. “One error could lead to a fault in 100 or 1000 AVs. The consequences for error are too high, even if the likelihood is low,” it said. IAG recommends that where there is any incident or compromised safety, the default should be that the ADS/AV has gone wrong and the ADSE is at fault, unless proven otherwise.
  
  
• In-service regulation: IAG is concerned breaches in the AV Safety Law (AVSL) will need to go through the court system. “Our preference is to prevent years of lengthy court battles by creating a quality framework and accreditation process for ADSE’s,” Ms Warren said. “The ADSE’s ability to continue operating in Australia should be linked to passing this accreditation, and for accreditation scores (or data) to be made public for consumers to make informed choice about which ADSE they trust.”
  
  
• Independent testing of technology: IAG says a new independent mechanism will be needed to test the functionality of AV technology and re-testing may be needed to ensure the technology functions as promised throughout the lifecycle, especially after repair.
  
  
• Data storage and availability: IAG says standardised and accessible data is critical for all parties and the type of data produced, the length of time for which it is stored and who can access it and how, should all form parts of a “robust data governance framework,” managed by a neutral, independent entity. It also wants ADSEs to be required to share collision information with insurers upon request.
  
  
• Driver capabilities: IAG wants national benchmarking for each state on how much education a driver requires to purchase or use an AV. This would be “safer for all participants as the rules apply uniformly across all states and territories in Australia”.