Autonomous Vehicle Compliance Software UK
The UK’s self-driving vehicle framework turns on evidence: safety cases, incident records, roadworthiness and maintenance logs, staff competency, data and cyber controls, and records kept for set retention periods. Complys is the compliance record-keeping software that keeps all of it organised, in date and ready to produce on demand — for Authorised Self-Driving Entities, no-user-in-charge operators and automated passenger service providers.
Last reviewed: September 2026. This page explains a developing UK regulatory area and is general information, not legal advice.
The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 is on the statute book[1], but not all of it is in force. The government’s implementation programme is working to bring in the wider framework — the authorisation and in-use regulatory schemes — in 2027, with the detailed regulations still being developed[2]. Separately, the automated passenger service (APS) permitting regulations were made in 2026 and are already law[5],[1]. And ahead of the full framework, organisations can run self-driving services under a pilot scheme — using a Vehicle Special Order and, for passenger services, an APS permit — which carries its own operator obligations (applicant guidance was published in March 2026)[4]. Treat current GOV.UK, DfT and DVSA guidance as the source of truth, and don’t read proposals or consultations as requirements already in force.
This page is about legally self-driving / automated vehicles authorised under the Act — not advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) such as adaptive cruise control or lane-keeping, where a human driver stays responsible[1]. The government is protecting terms like “self-driving”, “driverless”, “automated” and “autonomous” precisely so the two aren’t blurred[7].
How to manage autonomous vehicle compliance
Whichever route you’re on — authorisation, an operator licence, an automated passenger service permit or the pilot scheme — the day-to-day work is the same shape: hold the right evidence, keep it current, and be able to produce it on demand. The obligations in the Act and the pilot conditions almost all resolve into records that someone — a regulator, a statutory inspector, an insurer — may ask to see.
Managing it well means three things. First, knowing which records each obligation requires, so nothing is missed. Second, having one controlled place to keep them, so a document isn’t lost on a shared drive or sitting in an inbox when it’s asked for. Third, getting alerted before a certificate, a training record or a scheduled review lapses, so compliance doesn’t quietly drift out of date between audits. That is a record-keeping problem, and it is exactly what compliance software is built for.
Complys is that system of record. It won’t authorise your vehicles, write your safety case or make you compliant on its own — but it keeps the evidence the framework expects organised, versioned, in date and instantly retrievable. The rest of this page maps the obligations to the records they generate, and shows how each one is managed in Complys.
What autonomous vehicle compliance means
Autonomous vehicle compliance is the ongoing set of obligations that fall on organisations deploying or overseeing self-driving vehicles under the Automated Vehicles Act 2024. The Act creates a two-part system: an authorisation scheme that decides whether a vehicle meets the “self-driving test” and can drive itself safely and legally without a human monitoring or controlling it, and an in-use regulatory scheme that monitors authorised vehicles after deployment and enforces the rules through compliance notices, redress notices, monetary penalties and, ultimately, suspension or withdrawal of authorisation[1].
The safety benchmark the framework is built around is that a self-driving vehicle should be at least as safe as a careful and competent human driver — the standard a safety case is expected to speak to[1],[6]. For the organisations involved, most of that obligation resolves into evidence: a documented safety case and safety management system, controls that keep vehicles roadworthy and properly maintained, procedures that detect, manage and report incidents, competent staff, robust data and cyber-security, and records retained for defined periods so that regulators, investigators and insurers can see what happened and when[4]. Getting that record-keeping right is the practical core of staying compliant — and it is exactly what compliance software is for.
What applies now, in 2026, and from 2027
It’s easy to read “self-driving is legal” and assume the whole regime is switched on. It isn’t — different parts arrive at different times, and it matters which obligations bind you today.
Self-driving services can run under the pilot scheme, using a Vehicle Special Order and, for passenger services, an APS permit. The pilot sets its own conditions: a safety case and safety management system, incident and cyber reporting timelines, maintenance records and a recognised cyber framework[4].
The automated passenger service permitting regulations are law. They set a maximum permit validity of five years and the procedures for renewal, variation, suspension and withdrawal — applying to bus-like services in England, Wales and Scotland, and taxi/private-hire-like services in England[5].
Full implementation of the wider framework — the authorisation scheme, the in-use regulatory scheme and operator licensing for ASDEs and NUIC operators — is targeted for the second half of 2027[3],[1], with the implementation programme running through 2027 and detailed regulations still in development[2].
The practical takeaway: build your evidence base now against the pilot and permitting requirements that already bind you, in a way that will scale into the full authorisation and in-use obligations when they arrive.
Who needs autonomous vehicle compliance
The framework introduces specific, named roles, each with its own responsibilities. Operator licensing for these roles comes into force with the wider 2027 framework, but the organisations preparing for them are building their evidence bases now[1]:
The organisation responsible for an authorised vehicle's behaviour when it is driving itself. An ASDE is expected to keep the vehicle meeting the self-driving test throughout authorisation, manage software updates and maintenance, share specified event and exposure data, and report incidents where the self-driving feature was engaged.
A licensed organisation that oversees vehicles operating with no person on board responsible for taking control. A NUIC operator is expected to detect and respond to problems, run its operations from an operating centre in Great Britain, manage incidents and communicate with passengers, road users and emergency services, maintain vehicles and cyber-security, and learn from incidents.
Organisations running taxi, private-hire or bus-style self-driving services under a permit — under the pilot scheme now, and the Part 5 permitting regime as it comes into force. A permit can disapply existing taxi, private-hire and bus licensing, but brings its own safety-case, incident-reporting and record obligations.
Bodies taking part in the government's self-driving vehicle pilot scheme, which must demonstrate organisational, operational and technical competence and meet the scheme's safety, incident and record-keeping conditions.
Automated passenger services and permits
The 2026 APS Regulations put the procedural detail around Part 5 permits. A permit may be valid for a maximum of five years, with defined procedures for renewal, variation, suspension and withdrawal[5]. Territorial scope is not uniform: the Regulations apply to bus-like automated passenger services in England, Wales and Scotland[5], while taxi- and private-hire-like services are covered in England[5]. A permit can also disapply existing taxi, private-hire and bus licensing where it applies[5],[1].
Fleets, insurers, safety advisers and local authorities are drawn in too — through liability, incident and roadworthiness records, and (for authorities) their role in APS permits.
The obligations that become records
Across the authorisation scheme, the in-use scheme and the pilot conditions, the same evidence themes recur. Each is something an organisation has to maintain and be able to produce — the specific figures below are the pilot scheme’s conditions:
- Safety management. A documented safety case and safety management system, aligned with the framework's safety principles, kept current as the operation changes.[4]
- Risk assessments. Assessments of the operation, its operational design domain and foreseeable hazards — reviewed and re-issued as vehicles, routes or software change.[4]
- Incident recording & reporting. Procedures to detect, log, manage and report incidents. Under the pilot, critical incidents must be notified within 24 hours of the operator knowing about them.[4]
- Roadworthiness & maintenance. Records showing vehicles are maintained per specification and kept roadworthy, following DVSA guidance. Under the pilot, maintenance records are retained for at least 15 months.[4]
- Staff competency & training. Evidence that the people overseeing, maintaining or responding to vehicles are trained and competent, with training kept in date.[4]
- Data & cyber-security. Data-handling and cyber-security controls — the pilot expects alignment with the NCSC Cyber Assessment Framework — and cyber incidents reported within 72 hours.[4]
- Document control & retention. Version-controlled policies and procedures, and records retained for the defined periods so investigators and insurers can rely on them.[4]
- Expiry & renewal tracking. Certificates, checks, training and reviews that lapse on rolling dates — tracked so nothing quietly expires, including APS permit renewal.[4]
How Complys manages the records
Complys is compliance record-keeping software. It doesn’t authorise vehicles, write your safety case for you, guarantee compliance or replace legal advice — it’s the system of record that keeps the evidence above organised, in date and produced on demand. The building blocks map directly onto the obligations:
Log an incident, capture the response and evidence, and work to the reporting timelines the scheme sets — with a timestamped trail.
Build and version assessments of the operation and its hazards, and re-issue them when vehicles, routes or software change.
Hold version-controlled policies and safety-management procedures with owners, review dates and an approval history.
See at a glance who is trained and competent to oversee, maintain or respond to vehicles — and what's due for renewal.
Track checks, certificates, permits and reviews against their dates, with alerts before anything lapses.
One controlled home for records, retained for the required periods and retrievable when a regulator or insurer asks.
Because everything lives in one place with an audit trail, producing evidence stops being a scramble: when a statutory inspector, regulator or insurer asks what happened and when, the record is already there, in date and attributable. Complys supports your compliance — it doesn’t replace your legal duties or any approval from DfT, DVSA or CCAV.
Frequently asked questions
How do I manage autonomous vehicle compliance in the UK?
In practice it comes down to keeping evidence: a documented safety case and safety management system, incident logs with the required reporting timelines, roadworthiness and maintenance records, staff training and competency, data and cyber-security controls, and everything retained for its set period and produced on demand. Compliance software like Complys keeps those records organised, in date and audit-ready so you can show a regulator, statutory inspector or insurer that the controls are in place — it doesn't authorise vehicles or replace legal advice.
Who needs autonomous vehicle compliance in the UK?
The organisations most affected are Authorised Self-Driving Entities (ASDEs) — responsible for a vehicle's self-driving behaviour — and licensed no-user-in-charge (NUIC) operators who oversee vehicles operating without a driver, along with organisations running automated passenger services under a permit, and those taking part in the government's self-driving vehicle pilot scheme. Fleets, insurers and their advisers are also drawn in through incident, roadworthiness and liability records.
Is autonomous vehicle compliance a legal requirement now?
The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 is law, but not all of its provisions are in force yet — the government's implementation programme is working to implement the wider framework in 2027, and the detailed regulations are still being developed. The automated passenger service (APS) permitting regulations were made in 2026 and are law. In the meantime, organisations can run self-driving services under the pilot scheme (applicant guidance was published in March 2026), which carries its own operator obligations. Rely on current GOV.UK, DfT and DVSA guidance and don't treat proposals or consultations as requirements already in force.
What is the difference between ADAS and a self-driving vehicle?
Advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) — such as adaptive cruise control or lane-keeping assistance — support a human driver who remains responsible for the vehicle. A legally self-driving or automated vehicle is one authorised under the Automated Vehicles Act to drive itself without a human monitoring or controlling it. The distinction matters legally: the government is protecting terms such as “self-driving”, “driverless”, “automated” and “autonomous” so they can't be used to describe ordinary driver-assistance systems. Complys keeps that distinction throughout.
Which organisations must hold an automated passenger service permit?
Organisations running self-driving passenger services need an automated passenger service (APS) permit under Part 5 of the Automated Vehicles Act. The 2026 APS Regulations set out how permits work — including a maximum permit validity of five years and the procedures for renewal, variation, suspension and withdrawal. They apply to bus-like services in England, Wales and Scotland, and to taxi- and private-hire-like services in England. A permit can disapply existing taxi, private-hire and bus licensing, but brings its own safety, incident and record-keeping conditions.
How does Complys help with autonomous vehicle compliance?
Complys is compliance record-keeping software: it keeps the policies, risk assessments, incident logs, maintenance and roadworthiness records, training and competency evidence, certificates and document controls that the framework requires organised, in date and produced on demand. It doesn't authorise vehicles, guarantee compliance or replace legal advice — it's the system of record that makes the underlying obligations manageable and audit-ready.
Each numbered source is the primary reference for the claims marked with it above. This is a developing area — always check the latest guidance.
- [1] Automated Vehicles Act 2024 — UK Parliament / The National Archives (UK, GB). Published 2024-05-20. Checked 2026-09-20.
- [2] Automated Vehicles Act implementation programme — Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) (GB). Published 2025-02-26. Checked 2026-09-20.
- [3] Next step on the UK rollout of self-driving vehicles as public, charities and businesses asked for their views — Department for Transport (GB). Updated 2026-09-17. Checked 2026-09-20.
- [4] Self-driving vehicle pilot scheme: information for applicants — Department for Transport (ENGLAND, WALES, SCOTLAND). Updated 2026-09-17. Checked 2026-09-20.
- [5] The Automated Vehicles (Permits for Automated Passenger Services) Regulations 2026 — UK Parliament / The National Archives (ENGLAND, WALES, SCOTLAND). Published 2026-04-23. Checked 2026-09-20.
- [6] Automated vehicles: statement of safety principles — Department for Transport (UK). Published 2024-11-14. Checked 2026-09-20.
- [7] Automated vehicles: protecting marketing terms — Department for Transport (UK). Updated 2026-07-07. Checked 2026-09-20.
Keep your self-driving compliance evidence audit-ready
See how Complys organises the safety, incident, roadworthiness, training and record-retention evidence the framework expects — in one system, produced on demand.