Waymo’s Driverless Cars Are in Atlanta: What Happens If One Hits You?

If a driverless Waymo hits you in Atlanta, Waymo, the company operating the car, is usually the party responsible for how it drove. Georgia law treats whoever causes a fully autonomous vehicle to travel with its automated driving system engaged as the vehicle’s operator, and the vehicle must carry the liability insurance that state law requires (O.C.G.A. §§ 40-1-1 and 40-8-11).

Other parties can share the blame: Uber, which books Atlanta Waymo rides through its app, another human driver who caused the crash, or a manufacturer if a defect played a role. The car’s cameras and sensor data usually decide fault, so preserving that data quickly is the most important early step. As with any Georgia crash, you can recover if you were less than 50% at fault, and most injury claims must be filed within two years (O.C.G.A. §§ 51-12-33 and 9-3-33).

Written by attorney Jonathan Flack. Before founding Flack Injury Law, Jonathan spent two and a half years on the insurance side of commercial truck, tractor-trailer and medical transport van cases. Super Lawyers Rising Star (2024 to 2027). The National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40, Civil Plaintiff (2026). GTLA member. Last reviewed: October 31, 2026.

Who Is Liable When a Waymo Crashes in Atlanta

Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company owned by Alphabet, has carried paying riders in Atlanta since the summer of 2025, booked through the Uber app across about 65 square miles of the city. When one of its cars is involved in a crash, these are the parties that may be responsible:

• Waymo, as the operator. If the car drove carelessly, such as failing to yield or running a light, the claim is against the company responsible for how it drove. If a software or hardware defect caused the crash, a product liability claim may also apply.
• Uber. In Atlanta, Waymo rides are requested through Uber. Whether Uber shares responsibility depends on the facts of the crash and the companies’ arrangements, so we look at both.
• Another human driver. Many crashes involving a Waymo are caused by someone else. In July 2026, a Jeep rear-ended a Waymo at 33 mph on Cheshire Bridge Road and both vehicles caught fire. In that kind of crash, the other driver’s insurance is the first place to look.
• Your own coverage. If an at-fault human driver had no insurance or too little, your uninsured motorist coverage may pay. See our guide to uninsured motorist coverage in Georgia.

If you were hurt while riding in a Waymo, our page on Uber and Lyft accident claims in Atlanta explains how claims against rideshare companies and their insurers work.

What Georgia Law Says About Driverless Cars

Georgia was early to allow driverless cars. Under a 2017 law, a fully autonomous vehicle can run with no human driver if it is able to follow Georgia’s traffic laws, is registered as fully autonomous and carries the required insurance (O.C.G.A. § 40-8-11), and no driver’s license is needed while the automated system is engaged (O.C.G.A. § 40-5-21). After a crash, the vehicle must stay at the scene, and the vehicle or its operator must promptly notify local police (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-279).

Where Georgia has not caught up is enforcement. An Atlanta Police Department procedure, reported by Axios in February 2026, says the court system is currently unable to process traffic citations for driverless vehicles with no human operator, so officers write a report instead. That gap does not affect your right to bring an injury claim, but it means the police report may not assign a traffic violation the way it would with a human driver.

Waymo’s Safety Record in Atlanta

Waymo publishes its own safety data. Across more than 270 million fully driverless miles through June 2026 in Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco, it reports:

• 82% fewer injury-causing crashes than human drivers
• 95% fewer crashes involving serious injury or worse
• 93% fewer injury-causing crashes involving pedestrians
• 86% fewer injury-causing crashes involving cyclists

For Atlanta alone, Waymo told the AJC in October 2026 that its cars had an 88% lower injury crash rate than human drivers over 8.6 million rider-only miles. These are Waymo’s own figures compared against an estimated human benchmark, so they deserve some caution, though a July 2026 study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, based on Waymo’s driving in other cities, also found Waymo’s police-reportable crash rate was 68% lower than human drivers’.

No vehicle is perfect. Atlanta Public Schools recorded Waymo vehicles driving past school buses with their stop arms out, federal regulators opened an investigation, and Waymo issued a voluntary software recall in December 2025. In May 2026, Waymo paused Atlanta service after one of its empty robotaxis got stuck on a flooded road during heavy rain.

What to Do After a Crash With a Waymo

• Call 911 and get medical care, even if you feel fine.
• Photograph the Waymo, including any vehicle number on the car, the scene, the other vehicles and your injuries.
• If you were riding in the Waymo, screenshot the trip details in your Uber app before they are hard to find.
• Get names and phone numbers of witnesses and the police report number.
• Do not give a recorded statement to Waymo, Uber or any insurer before talking with a lawyer.
• Act quickly. The car’s camera footage, sensor data and operating logs are the best evidence of what happened, and a lawyer can send a written demand that the companies preserve them.

Waymo Accident Questions

What Should the City and State Do?

Atlanta and Georgia need to develop a clear framework for driverless vehicle accountability, not years from now, but now. Specifically:

• Police should be able to cite the owners of autonomous vehicles when those vehicles break traffic laws, as a 2026 Tennessee law does by mailing citations to the registered owner
• There should be clear rules on who is liable when a driverless vehicle causes a crash and how injured people reach the operating company and its insurer
• There should be accessible, transparent reporting of all accidents involving autonomous vehicles on Georgia roads

As autonomous vehicles become a larger part of everyday Atlanta traffic, the gap between the technology and the law will cause real harm to real people if it isn’t addressed.

Flack has your back.

Related Guides

• Atlanta Uber and Lyft Accident Attorney
• Lyft Accident Lawyer in Atlanta
• Uber or Lyft Driver Injured in Georgia? Where Your Compensation Can Come From
• Hurt as an Uber or Lyft Passenger in Atlanta: Who Pays and What to Do
• Was the Uber Driver’s App on? Why It Changes Your Georgia Claim

See all our guides for people hurt in Georgia crashes.