Driverless cars are ready to roll. But are Brits ready to ride?

13 June 2025, 13:49

By John Kushnick

Uber will trial robotaxis in London next spring, where passengers will be driven by artificial intelligence (AI) rather than a human.

The company has partnered with AI firm Wayve, whose self-driving vehicles have already been tested in the city under human supervision. The pilot will be the first of its kind for Uber in the UK and comes as the government pushes to accelerate the adoption of autonomous vehicles (AVs), now aiming for a 2027 rollout of driverless cars.

The Department for Transport says the industry could create 38,000 jobs and add £42bn to the UK economy by 2035.

However, while driverless cars are ready to roll, Brits aren’t ready to ride.

We commissioned research that revealed Brits are wary of purchasing self-driving cars, with safety concerns and lack of trust in technology prevailing as the top concerns.

In fact, over two thirds (39%) disagree that the current laws are adequate to address the technology. The UK government was originally aiming for driverless technology to reach British roads in 2026, with the date now changed to the second half of 2027. This delay could be seen as a lack of preparation, but equally, it could be that they’re taking time to address concerns head-on.

Brits ask 'what, why, how'

Over half (59%) of respondents agree that drivers should require a new license to drive a self-driving car and that self-driving cars should be required to pass more stringent safety tests than human-driven vehicles (78%). Ultimately, Brits are calling for a complete overhaul of the road safety system and for the Highway Code to be rewritten.

While you can sympathise that currently, there are more questions than answers, especially around liability and who is at fault if a crash occurs in a self-driving car, some of this fear is misplaced.

Many people express safety concerns about self-driving cars, yet often overlook the fact that human drivers are actually quite unsafe. The Department for Transport reminds the public that AVs have faster reaction times than human drivers, are trained on a wide range of driving scenarios and don’t suffer from distractions, fatigue or impaired judgment. As such, self-driving cars could help reduce road injuries and fatalities. It’s those types of opportunities that Brits should be focusing on, rather than the apocalyptic scaremongering in the media.

Road ahead

We’ve seen the US take strides in implementing driverless technology and it’s important the UK doesn’t fall behind. However, the success of the UK’s tech aims will depend on buy-in from the general public. In this context, trust is currency, and if the government is banking on driverless technology taking off, it needs to deliver robust regulation and ongoing education around the ways autonomous driving could make roads safer.

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John Kushnick is Legal Operations Director at National Accident Helpline, the UK's leading provider of personal injury advice, services and support.

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