Is Your HOA Ready for Driverless Vehicles?

Autonomous and driverless vehicles are no longer a futuristic concept. They are operating on California roads today, and their numbers and geographic reach are likely to continue expanding. For homeowners associations, that development raises an issue that has received relatively little attention: What happens when a vehicle with nobody in the driver’s seat arrives at the entrance to an HOA community?

The question becomes particularly interesting in a gated community. Imagine an empty driverless vehicle arriving at a guarded gate to pick up a resident. The guard sees the vehicle, but there is nobody inside to speak with. The guard is immediately confronted with issues such as:

• Who requested the vehicle?
• Which residence is it going to?
• Does the guard open the gate?
• If the vehicle is not authorized, how does the guard tell it to leave?
• What happens if it simply sits in front of the gate?

These situations may sound unusual today. They are unlikely to remain unusual for long.

Driverless Vehicles Are Already Here

The important point for HOA boards is not which autonomous vehicle company ultimately dominates the market. It is that vehicles without human drivers are going to become an increasingly ordinary part of residential transportation. HOAs should prepare for them.

The Problem Is Different From Uber or Lyft

Associations already deal with Uber, Lyft, taxis, delivery drivers, contractors, guests, and other vehicles entering their communities. But autonomous vehicles create an important difference because there may be nobody inside the vehicle who can answer the HOA’s questions.

A traditional rideshare driver arriving at a guarded community can tell the guard: “I’m picking up John Smith at 125 Oak Street.” A completely driverless vehicle may not be able to have that conversation. Likewise, if a guard tells a traditional driver: “You aren’t on the guest list. Please turn around,” the driver understands what to do.

It should not be assumed that a driverless vehicle will understand a guard standing outside the vehicle giving verbal instructions.

That seemingly simple difference changes how an HOA should approach access control.

The HOA Should Not Have to Figure Out Who Ordered the Car

Perhaps the most important principle for an autonomous vehicle policy is this: The resident who requests the autonomous vehicle should be responsible for arranging its access to the community. The responsibility should not fall on the guard, property manager, or association.

Suppose an empty driverless vehicle arrives at a gated community and the guard has no information identifying the resident who requested it. The guard should not be expected to start calling residences trying to determine who ordered the vehicle. Nor should the guard be expected to research the vehicle operator or attempt to troubleshoot the vehicle’s technology.

Instead, the rule can be simple: If the vehicle cannot be associated with an authorized resident, guest, address, or access request, the gate remains closed. The resident who requested the vehicle must resolve the access issue.

That principle can continue to work regardless of whether the vehicle is operated by Waymo, Tesla, Zoox, or a company that does not yet exist.

“Just Tell the Car to Leave” May Not Be an Adequate Procedure

Autonomous vehicles also present a new challenge when something goes wrong. What should a guard do if?