Robotaxi Lawsuit

Lawsuits have been filed by people who were seriously injured when they were hit by self-driving robotaxis.

What You Can Do & How We Can Help

The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting robotaxi injury and wrongful death cases in all 50 states. If you or someone you know was hit by a robotaxi in a car accident, pedestrian injury, bicycle, or other type of crash, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Car Accident Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.

UPDATE: Zoox Robotaxi Back on U.S. Roads After Safety Recall

In July 2025, the Amazon-owned Zoox robotaxi service was granted an exemption to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, clearing the way for Zoox to continue testing its self-driving taxis in Las Vegas and other cities.

Federal safety officials also ended a safety investigation after multiple rear-end collisions were caused by Zoox taxis unexpectedly slamming on their brakes.

Zoox recalled 270 vehicles to fix the issue in May 2025, explaining that the Automated Driving Software (ADS) “may have reacted over-cautiously” or “incorrectly anticipated a collision and braked unnecessarily hard.”

Tesla Robotaxi Has Problematic Launch in Austin, Texas

In June 2025, Tesla launched its self-driving Robotaxi vehicles without drivers on the city streets of Austin, Texas. In just the first 3 days, there were alarming incidents, such as:

• Wrong-way driving into the oncoming traffic lane
• Speeding next to the Texas School for the Deaf (and other locations)
• Hard braking to a near-stop after mistaking shadows or police vehicles off the road for obstacles (also called “phantom braking”)
• Dropping off a passenger in the middle of a busy intersection and blocking traffic
• And more

What Are Robotaxis?

Robotaxis are autonomous vehicles, also known as self-driving taxis, or driverless taxis. They are fully-automated, battery-powered, electric vehicles that drive on their own using sensors and computer systems.

Robotaxis are designed to operate as ride-hailing services, in direct competition with traditional taxicabs, apps like Uber or Lyft, and buses.

The technical industry term for this type of fully-autonomous vehicle is SAE Level 4 or 5. Right now, most self-driving taxis are at SAE Level 4, or “High Automation,” which means the car can handle all driving tasks within specific limitations, like certain roads or ideal weather conditions.

The long-term goal is to reach SAE Level 5, or “Full Automation,” with millions of self-driving cars and robo-taxis on the road, safely handling all driving tasks, in all conditions, without any human intervention. Humans would be just passengers, and the car wouldn’t need a steering wheel.

Top Robotaxi & Autonomous Vehicle Companies

The top robotaxi companies in the U.S. that are available on city streets, or are in development for the future, include:

• Waymo (owned by Google / Alphabet, USA)
• Tesla Robotaxi (USA)
• Zoox (owned by Amazon, USA)
• Aurora Innovation (USA, self-driving truck project in development)
• Pony.AI (China / USA – robotaxi project in development)
• Cruise (General Motors / GM, USA – robotaxi project abandoned in December 2024)

There are also several international robotaxi companies, mostly in China, where manufacturers have produced large fleets of low-cost electric taxis. For example:

• Apollo Go (Baidu, China)
• WeRide (Baidu, China)
• AutoX (China)
• DiDi Autonomous (China)
• And more

What Happened?

In the early years of robotaxi development, cities like San Francisco allowed companies to test robotaxis without a human driver behind the wheel. Tragically, innocent people were injured in serious accidents, and cities ordered these vehicles off the road due to safety concerns.

Your Robotaxi Is Here: But Can You Trust It?

Robotaxis Are Being Tested in Texas, Arizona, California

Now, self-driving robotaxis are being tested in cities like Phoenix, Dallas, Houston, and San Francisco — but with a human driver behind the wheel for safety.

For example, in June 2024, Cruise re-launched robotaxis in Dallas, Texas, with human drivers behind the wheel of an autonomous vehicle. Cruise said it hopes to fully resume driverless robotaxi rides in the coming months, and expand the fleet of vehicles to other cities nationwide.

Robotaxi Lawsuits for Injuries & Deaths

Robotaxis have seriously injured people in accidents that could have been prevented with a human driver, better technology, or safety features. Our law firm is investigating robotaxi lawsuits involving:

• People who were hit by a robotaxi
• Pedestrian injuries
• Bicycle injuries
• Car accidents
• And other types of robotaxi accidents

GM’s Cruise Reaches $8 Million Robotaxi Lawsuit Settlement

Cruise, the self-driving robotaxi company owned by General Motors (GM), has agreed to pay at least $8 million to settle a robotaxi lawsuit. The settlement was offered to a woman who was dragged more than 20 feet when she was hit by a self-driving robotaxi in San Francisco.

What Happened?

The incident happened on October 2, 2023, when the woman was in a crosswalk in San Francisco late at night. She was struck by another vehicle in a hit-and-run, slid over the hood, and hit by the robotaxi.

She was dragged more than 20 feet to the curb when the self-driving vehicle attempted to pull over after the accident. She was trapped under the robotaxi until emergency crews were able to pull her out and rush her to San Francisco General Hospital in critical condition.

Robotaxis Pulled Off Roads for Safety Risk

In October 2023, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) revoked their permit for Cruise’s self-driving robotaxis, citing an “unreasonable risk to public safety” in San Francisco, California.

Lawyers hired by GM to investigate the incident determined that Cruise failed to hand over the complete video to the California DMV due to a poor internet connection, and failed to verbally explain what happened.

Cruise Pays $1.5 Million Penalty After Failing to Fully Report Robotaxi Accident to NHTSA

In September 2024, Cruise agreed to pay a $1.5 million penalty for failing to fully report the crash in October 2023, when a robotaxi hit and dragged a pedestrian.

NHTSA Deputy Administrator Sophie Shulman said in a statement:

“It is vitally important for companies developing automated driving systems to prioritize safety and transparency from the start.”

Cruise Pays $500,000 Criminal Fine After Pedestrian Robotaxi Accident

In November 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Cruise agreed to a $500,000 criminal fine after the company admitted to filing a false report in an attempt to influence a federal investigation of the robotaxi accident in October 2023, when a woman was hit and dragged by a robotaxi in San Francisco.

Do I Have a Robotaxi Lawsuit?

The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting robotaxi induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or someone you know was hit by a robotaxi in a car accident, pedestrian injury, or bicycle injury, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Car Accident Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.

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