A new report claims personal data worth £32bn by 2025 will be instrumental in the success or failure of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs), while trust could be the deciding factor.

A Range Rover Sport undertakes its first self-driving journey on the Coventry Ring Road

The “Flourish Insurance and Legal Report 2018” report, published by AXA and Burges Salmon, studied how passengers’ personal data needs to be managed by driverless cars.

The Flourish consortium has urged government and industry stakeholders to create a ‘data map’ to clarify who will need access to passengers’ data, what this data will consist of, and when it will be used.

Trust is recognised as a key talking point of the report, highlighting 94% of consumers need to trust a company in order to share personal data with them. The map is said to increase trust and provide clarity into what personal information passengers will be sharing when using CAVs.

David Williams, technical director at AXA UK said: “CAVs will only become a reality if users trust us with their personal data. This data is integral for driverless vehicles to provide reduced congestion, fewer accidents and better mobility for all. This report shows how the government, car manufacturers, software developers and insurers need to work together to understand how, and when, motorists’ data should be used.”

The report also investigates the issue of cybersecurity and suggests measures to protect both CAVs and their passengers. It notes that ‘lifetime system security is a key consideration for the CAV ecosystem’, with 36% are nervous about cyber-attacks on driverless cars.

The report raises the question on who should be the ‘data controller’ (i.e. the person or body legally in charge of data) of the information gathered by CAVs. According to AXA’s research, 20% feel that this should be the government, while 16% think a new driverless car regulatory body should be created. Only 5% said the manufacturer of the vehicle should be the data controller.

However, when asked who the data controller should be allowed to share this information with, two thirds said the emergency services, 45% said insurers and 41% said breakdown services. In fact, almost 70% of people said they would share their data if it improved road safety.

It is estimated that by 2025 the value of data to the driverless market will be £32 billion per year.

To read the FLOURISH Insurance and Legal Report 2018 in full, visit the AXA website.