Policy development Part 3 and Schedule 4: Policing and investigation Chapter 2: Investigation of incidents by statutory inspectors
Chapter 2 makes provision for the appointment of inspectors of automated vehicle incidents for the purpose of carrying out safety investigations. Such investigations are to increase understanding of and reduce the risks of harm from the use of automated vehicles and not to establish blame or liability. Further provision under this Chapter is concerned with giving inspectors powers to obtain and gather evidence and also with the subsequent use of information, contents of safety reports and procedural matters.
	This is distinct from the in-use regulatory function, the purpose of which is to monitor and enforce regulatory standards. The regulatory function will look at how and why an automated vehicle has committed a traffic infraction, and whether it is appropriate to issue regulatory sanctions. The safety investigations conducted by statutory inspectors does not establish blame or liability, nor issue sanctions, but rather publishes non-binding recommendations. This is because the purpose of a statutory inspector is to identify, improve the understanding of, and reduce the risk of automated vehicle incidents through conducting a safety investigation.
	These powers fulfil the recommendation from the Law Commissions that an independent collision investigation unit should be given responsibility for investigating serious, complex and high-profile collisions involving automated vehicles.