Latest Personal Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Lawsuit Says Utah Bus Driver Was Sick, Tired Before Fatal Crash
May 17 2019 // A Greyhound driver who authorities say fell asleep before the bus careened off a road in the Utah desert two years ago was tired, sick and should never have been behind the wheel, according to a new lawsuit over the crash...
Kansas Supreme Court: Bars Can’t Be Sued by Drunken Driving Victims
May 15 2019 // The Kansas Supreme Court has upheld a 34-year-old rule that prohibits victims injured by drunken drivers from suing the bars that served them. The high court’s ruling on May 10 came in the case of Jeff Kudlacik, who...
National Labor Board Memo Says Uber Drivers Are Contractors, Not Employees
May 15 2019 // Drivers for ride-hailing company Uber Technologies Inc. are independent contractors and not employees, the general counsel of a U.S. labor agency has concluded, in an advisory memo that is likely to carry significant...
Uber May Rethink Litigation Avoidance Plan as 60,000 Drivers File Arbitration Demands
May 8 2019 // For Uber Technologies Inc., using legal arbitration to deal with driver compensation complaints — over anything from pay to overtime to mileage reimbursement — seemed like the smart play: it would preclude...
Tennessee Passes Bill Allowing Drivers with Unpaid Court Debt to Keep Licenses
May 7 2019 // Tennessee lawmakers have signed off on legislation that would prevent the state from revoking or suspending driver’s licenses over unpaid court costs. The Senate on Tuesday advanced a proposal allowing people to...
Tennessee Approves Ban on Handheld Phones While Driving
May 3 2019 // Gov. Bill Lee will decide whether Tennessee will ban the use of handheld electronic devices, including cellphones, while driving. The Senate voted 23-7 on Tuesday to send Lee the bill. The House previously cleared it in a...
Michigan Governor Orders Study of Insurers’ Use of Non-Driving Rating Factors
May 2 2019 // Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ordered a review of how Michigan’s auto insurers use non-driving factors such as education and credit scores to set premiums that rank among the nation’s highest. The Democrat’s...
Florida Lawmakers Pass Text While Driving Ban, Hands-Free Requirement
May 1 2019 // The Florida House on Monday passed a compromise bill that would make texting while driving a primary offense, as well as create a hands-free area within school zones and construction zones where workers are present. The...
Council Formed with Goal of Changing Ohio’s Distracted Driving Culture
Apr 29 2019 // Gov. Mike DeWine says a newly formed council will develop a plan to change the distracted driving culture in Ohio. The Republican governor this week announced creation of the Distracted Driving Advisory Council. The...
Getting Americans to Stop Using Phones While Driving
Apr 29 2019 // The distracted driving report by Zendrive, a traffic-data startup, makes it clearer and clearer each year that millions of Americans can’t stop themselves from talking, texting and livestreaming—yes, even using...
Florida Senate Passes Texting While Driving Ban
Apr 29 2019 // Texting while driving would become a primary traffic offense along with talking on a handheld cellphone in school and construction zones under a bill passed by the Florida Senate. The Senate’s 33-5 vote on Thursday...
Arizona Becomes 48th State with Cellphone-Driving Law
Apr 25 2019 // Arizona ended a decade of resistance to restrictions on using a cellphone while driving when Gov. Doug Ducey signed a law this week outlawing holding a phone behind the wheel. It is now the 48th state to ban texting and...
Cops Draw Blood to Catch Impaired Drivers
Apr 23 2019 // It was about 6:30 on a Friday night in January when Phoenix Police Det. Kemp Layden pulled over a white Jeep Cherokee that was speeding and weaving in and out of its lane. The 47-year-old driver spoke slowly, his eyes were...
Car Sharing Lobbyists Battle Car Renting Lobbyists, Driving State Lawmakers Crazy
Apr 19 2019 // The bill that turned Illinois into the focal point of a bitter debate over car-sharing last year started as a proposal about what happens when a rental car is stolen. The legislation, which would allow rental companies to...
Driving in Georgia While Sitting in California; Remote Control Beats Autonomy
Apr 18 2019 // For four days in February, Ben Shukman showed up to his office at Phantom Auto in Mountain View, California, sat down in front of a bank of computer screens with a steering wheel in a darkened room, and began driving. As...
Digital or Plastic? Or Both? States Experiment with Driver’s Licenses
Apr 17 2019 // Millions of people may be able to show their smartphones rather than a plastic card to prove they’re legit to drive, vote or buy a beer in coming years. Louisiana in July became the first state to make digital...
Proposed Bill Would End Texas’ Controversial Driver Responsibility Program
Apr 15 2019 // Texas’ Driver Responsibility Program (DRP) would be repealed under a bill considered by the Senate Finance Committee, the state Senate reported. The program has been heavily criticized for the financial burden it...
California to Consider Allowing Small Self-Driving Delivery Trucks on Roads
Apr 15 2019 // California regulators have proposed regulations that would allow vehicle manufacturers to test or deploy small self-driving delivery trucks on public roads, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles said in a...
Florida Could Expand Self-Driving Car Law
Apr 10 2019 // Self-driving vehicles could be operated in Florida without a human backup under a bill approved by a House committee last week, which could pave the way for companies like Uber and Lyft to deploy fleets of driverless...
Michigan Commission: THC Level Not a ‘Reliable Indicator’ of Driving Impairment
Apr 2 2019 // A state commission says Michigan should not set a legal limit for how much of marijuana’s active ingredient motorists can have in their system. The Impaired Driving Safety Commission recently forwarded its findings...
