Maria Quintero Quoted in Law360 Article on Trend of Driverless Cars Shifting Liability from Driver to Manufacturer

August 5, 2016

Maria S. Quintero, a San Francisco-based partner in the Insurance and Reinsurance Services practice at Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, was quoted in the article, "Driverless Cars Will Fuel Surge In Product Liability Coverage," published by Law360 on August 5, 2016.

The article discusses liability of driverless cars trending from the drivers but towards the manufacturers and their hardware and software systems. A fatal accident in May involving a Tesla Model S equipped with partially autonomous braking and steering features has raised questions in the legal community about who will be held liable for crashes involving self-driving cars. Ms. Quintero comments on this legal concern stating "[i]n the future, if the car makes the error, the liability would fall on the auto manufacturer or supplier. When you shift the liability from driver to a car itself, you are implicating manufacturers and suppliers all throughout the chain."

Read the full article, "Driverless Cars Will Fuel Surge In Product Liability Coverage," on the Law360 website. Please note a subscription is required.

Ms. Quintero devotes her practice within her firm's Insurance Services Group to assisting clients with all facets of insurance law including insurance litigation, coverage opinions, policy drafting and bad faith and extra-contractual disputes. Maria has extensive experience with commercial general liability and professional liability lines, and commercial and residential property lines.

Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is a U.S.-based law firm with offices nationwide. The firm's national reputation spans the insurance industry, the financial services sector, professional services, and other highly regulated industries. Hinshaw provides holistic legal solutions—from litigation and dispute resolution, and business advisory and transactional services, to regulatory compliance—for clients of all sizes. Visit www.hinshawlaw.com for more information and follow @Hinshaw on LinkedIn and X.