Small and medium-sized enterprises do not believe driverless cars will be a feature on our roads by 2021 and see them as a potential threat to business.
The research comes after the Chancellor predicted that driverless cars would be on UK roads by 2021 in last year's budget speech.
Only 31% of SMEs in the UK expect to see widespread use of driverless vehicles, falling to 21% in the transport sector, Close Brothers Asset Finance reveals.
Transport SMEs, however, are more likely to feel threatened than those in other sectors with 31% calling them a threat, 27% marked it as an opportunity and 42% said ‘neither’.
When asked if a business will be impacted by driverless cars, 21% in the transport sector agreed, but over half (53%) said 'no'.
Roughly one-third (30%) of those surveyed are of the opinion that driverless cars will have a positive impact on productivity while 38% are of the opposite view; the remaining 32% are unsure.
Close Brothers Asset Finance’s chief executive Neil Davies said: “The government has ambitious plans to invest in the sector, but what our research shows is that the jury is, in effect, still out, for most business owners.”
Mike - 20/03/2018 11:46
Doubt will remain following the Uber incident reported today and how these vehicles will get accurate location information from. Often when I look at my trackers I observe what I call satellite drift where a vehicle is showed as being in a field.