Autonomous Vehicle News
If Ford secures a patent it applied for in August 2021 for "vehicle repossession" technology, owners who miss payments could find themselves unable to use important features or even locked out of their cars altogether. The patent also outlines how autonomous or semi-autonomous cars could repossess themselves if not in a garage by driving to a nearby location to avoid confrontations between the repossessors and owners. The Drive notes that while Ford may not be planning to develop its patent soon, the idea of your car driving itself away because you missed payment(s) is unsettling. Ford is the only automaker to attempt to patent something like this, but it's unlikely to be the last. For now, though, Ford's patent is just a proposal to simplify repossession.