Consumer confidence in autonomous vehicle technology is on the rise, but there’s still room for improvement, according to a new report from J.D. Power.
With car manufacturers included General Motors Co. AND Ford Motor Co. By testing self-driving vehicles on public roads, consumers are becoming accustomed to the technology, but overall confidence remains low, according to J.D. Power’s 2024 US Mobility Confidence Index study released last month. The study was prepared by JD Power in collaboration with the MIT Advanced Vehicle Technology Consortium.
Consumer willingness for autonomous vehicles declined in 2022 and 2023, but improved from 37 points (on a 100-point scale) in 2023 to 39 points in 2024.
“This year’s improvement is minimal because there are still many unmet needs needed to increase consumer confidence,” Lisa Boor, senior manager of automotive benchmarking and mobility development at J.D. Power, said in a statement.
The study revealed that 83% of respondents said they wanted to see more AV safety data before taking a ride, while 86% said they wanted the ability to get behind the wheel if necessary. Additionally, parents of teen drivers indicated that they would feel twice as comfortable if they let their children drive the family car rather than ride in a self-driving taxi.
“Repeatedly and consistently reporting safety findings over time – with independent oversight – will aid acceptance,” Boor said. He added that other consumer concerns about AV technology include insurance costs and data security.
For example, more than half of respondents (57%) believe AV owners will need liability insurance.
On the data privacy front, 64% of respondents were concerned that AV data collection would not be secure. Additionally, 40% indicated that the strength of an automotive brand’s data privacy policy compared to other brands could impact their future car purchasing decisions.
“Consumers are increasingly concerned about data privacy, and this study shows a strong link to fully automated self-driving vehicles,” Bryan Reimer, an AgeLab researcher at MIT’s Center for Transportation and Logistics, said in a statement and founder of the MIT AVT consortium. .
He explained that consumer concerns about data privacy may impact their comfort with AV technology.
“Security and transparency of data regarding their use are becoming increasingly important as a basis for building trust in technology and connected digital solutions,” said Reimer.
General Motors has been embroiled in legal battles for illegally collecting and selling driver data that was used by insurance companies to adjust drivers’ premiums. But the automaker isn’t alone, as 25 other companies also face scrutiny for inadequate data protection practices, a 2023 Mozilla Foundation study found.
The August 2024 J.D. Power study was developed through responses to an online survey of a national sample of 3,000 U.S. vehicle owners. Respondents were asked what their potential comfort was on both a personal and business level AVincluding fully automated public transport vehicles. They were also asked about bookings to drive an AV in case they were unable to drive due to injury, sharing the road with other companies to test on public roads, and whether they intended to purchase a vehicle with a certain level of autonomous driving capability.