Latest Personal Auto Headlines

All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Boston Approves NuTonomy Self-Driving Car Testing Citywide

Jun 22 2018 // A self-driving car company is getting the green light to test its vehicles on a Colonial-era street network with a reputation for aggressive human drivers. Boston city officials announced Wednesday that they’ve...

Self-Driving Waymo Part of 5-Vehicle Crash in Arizona

Jun 19 2018 // Mesa police say a self-driving vehicle was among five cars involved in a collision, but no serious injuries were reported. The driver of the Waymo vehicle told authorities that the car wasn’t in autonomous mode at...

Despite New Law, Nebraska Not Expected to See Self-Driving Cars Soon

Jun 18 2018 // Nebraska lawmakers may have cleared the way for companies to test self-driving vehicles with a law passed earlier this year, but don’t expect a large number to hit the streets anytime soon. Although industry...

Rising Homeowners Losses Hurt P/C Insurers in 2017: Fitch

Jun 18 2018 // Personal lines underwriting losses rose in 2017 for the fourth year in a row, Fitch Ratings found in a new report. There’s a twist, however. In the three years prior to 2017, personal automobile insurance contributed...

Driver Had Hands off Wheel in Fatal Tesla Autopilot Crash

Jun 18 2018 // The driver of a Tesla Inc. Model X car using Autopilot did not have his hands on the steering wheel in the six seconds before a fatal crash in California in March, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said earlier...

Arizona Launches Driver Safety Campaign for Monsoon Season

Jun 13 2018 // A new safety campaign will remind Arizona drivers stuck in dust storms to pull over, turn off all car lights and wait until visibility is back before hitting the road again. The “pull aside, stay alive”...

Driver Had Hands off Wheel in Fatal Tesla Autopilot Crash in California

Jun 7 2018 // The driver of a Tesla Inc. Model X car using Autopilot did not have his hands on the steering wheel in the six seconds before a fatal crash in California in March, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said...

Georgia Bans Use of Handheld Devices While Driving

Jun 4 2018 // Georgia is the latest state to ban the use of handheld devices while behind the wheel. Gov. Nathan Deal signed H.B. 673 into law on May 2, making Georgia the 16th state to ban using a cellphone, including texting, shooting...

State Farm to Cut Personal Auto Rates by 3% in Alabama

Jun 4 2018 // Approximately 950,000 State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. personal auto insurance customers in Alabama will see rate reductions starting this month, according to the nationwide insurance company. Thanks to the...

Uber Ends Self-Driving Program in Arizona Following Fatality

Jun 4 2018 // Uber has shut down its self-driving car operation in Arizona two months after a fatal crash involving one of its vehicles, the company said last month. Uber Technologies Inc. is not shuttering its entire autonomous vehicle...

Policymakers Take On Distracted Driving Nationwide

Jun 4 2018 // Over the course of several decades, auto crash rates and fatalities had been on the decline. This reduction offset slightly increased crash severity and helped to moderate the cost of auto insurance. However, starting in...

Marijuana, Opioids Found in High Percentage of Drivers Killed in Car Crashes

May 31 2018 // More than half of drivers killed in car accidents who were tested for drugs had marijuana, opioids or a combination of the two in their system, according to a new report. The report from the Governors Highway Safety...

Tesla Hits Parked Police Vehicle in California, Driver Blames Autopilot

May 30 2018 // The driver of a Tesla Inc. Model S crashed into an unoccupied, parked police vehicle in Laguna Beach, Calif., on Tuesday and the driver told investigators the Tesla was in “Autopilot” mode at the time, police...

Mass., Conn. Senators Seek Answers About Safety Protocols for Self-Driving Cars

May 29 2018 // U.S. Senators Edward Markey and Richard Blumenthal are pressing automakers and technology companies that are developing self-driving cars about their safety protocols for test-driving the vehicles. Federal investigators...

Uber Disabled Brake of Self-Driving Car in Arizona Fatal Crash

May 25 2018 // Uber had disabled an emergency braking system in a self-driving vehicle that struck and killed a woman in Arizona in March even though the car had identified the need to apply the brakes, the National Transportation Safety...

Uber Ends Self-Driving Program in Arizona Following Fatality

May 24 2018 // Uber has shut down its self-driving car operation in Arizona two months after a fatal crash involving one of its vehicles, the company said on Wednesday. Uber Technologies Inc is not shuttering its entire autonomous...

Uber Expands Health Insurance Benefit to Drivers in 21 European Countries

May 24 2018 // Uber plans to offer all its European drivers an upgraded version of the health insurance it already provides in France in a drive to attract independent workers and fend off criticism over their treatment. The San...

State Farm to Cut Personal Auto Rates by 3% in Alabama

May 24 2018 // Approximately 950,000 State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. personal auto insurance customers in Alabama will see rate reductions starting next month, according to the nationwide insurance company. Thanks to the...

Woman Awarded $1.2M in New Mexico Stolen Car Crash

May 22 2018 // A Santa Fe County, N.M. jury has awarded an 80-year-old woman more than $1.2 million after she was injured in a crash involving a stolen car chased by Santa Fe police. The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the jury decided that...

American Drivers Grow More Afraid of Driverless Vehicles: AAA

May 22 2018 // Three-quarters (73 percent) of American drivers now say they would be too afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle, up significantly from 63 percent in late 2017. Additionally, two-thirds (63 percent) of U.S. adults...