One Month of Self-Driving Taxis in Miami. What to Know.

Just over a month after Waymo’s autonomous ride-hailing service was launched in Miami, the company is already facing dubious safety concerns.

Videos of one of the company’s autonomous vehicles stopped on the Venetian Causeway Bridge and causing a traffic backup went viral online last month. The incident sparked conversations online centered around safety.

Mykel Kochenderfer of the Stanford Intelligence Systems Laboratory told reporters with NBC 6 South Florida that companies like Waymo hoping to launch these programs “need to get it right.”

“Miami is all about innovation, and we welcome innovation, but it never comes before public safety,” he said. “Public safety is the most important aspect. If Waymo wants to come into Dade, with a program or fully launch, they need to make sure these kinks are taken care of.”

Cellphone videos of the event showed traffic at a standstill behind the driverless vehicle on an evening commute, backing up traffic and frustrating other drivers. More than one vehicle went around the Waymo into a lane with oncoming traffic to get around the stopped car. Thankfully, no accidents or injuries were reported.

A spokesperson with the company told reporters with NBC 6 that safety on the road is their “highest priority.”

“We are committed to learning from situations like this to improve fort the future,” they said.

Waymo began testing their robotaxis in Miami in 2025 with rollout to a limited number of drivers last month. No major incidents have been reported in Miami; however, the company has gone viral in other cities for numerous incidents.

Waymo vehicles made headlines several months ago in San Francisco, California, after a power outage. The outage caused traffic signals to stop working, which, in turn, caused issues with the vehicles. Viral videos showed the robotaxis at a standstill on city streets with flashing headlights, causing traffic jams and frustrations from other drivers.

A Waymo in Los Angeles, California, drove through a crime scene as police were working.

Another officer in Atlanta, Georgia, had to jog ahead of a Waymo and stand in front of it to get it to stop driving forward as it approached a crosswalk.

In January in Santa Monica, California, a Waymo driving near a school hit a child. Thankfully, no injuries were reported as the vehicle was driving under 6 mph.

Leesfield & Partners

As a personal injury law firm with five decades of experience, Leesfield & Partners has seen more than its fair share of tragic crash cases that have changed the lives of families forever. Updated data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that Florida has had approximately 267 autonomous vehicle incidents from 2019 to 2024. This puts the state as fourth in the country for autonomous vehicle accidents behind Arizona with 466 incidents. Texas was ranked in second place with approximately 530. In first place is California with 2,227 incidents, according to the data. These incidents may involve issues such as sensor limitations and/or difficult traffic situations.

Eric Shane, a Leesfield & Partners Trial Attorney, published an article in the Daily Business Review, exploring the legal responsibility and complexities associated with driverless vehicles.

“In cases involving fully autonomous vehicles, traditional Florida law no longer applies,” Mr. Shane said in the article.

When a vehicle’s automated driving system is engaged, liability for any resulting injuries may ultimately fall on the vehicle’s owner or manufacturer, per Florida law. A failure of the automated system can give rise to product liability claims, requiring injured plaintiffs to demonstrate that the system was defective and that this defect directly resulted in the injury-causing crash.

“In theory, it would appear that proving liability in an autonomous vehicle crash is easier for the plaintiff,” Mr. Shane wrote in the article. “Our firm’s 48 years of experience representing plaintiffs in thousands of negligence and strict liability lawsuits tells a different story.”

Leesfield & Partners is no stranger when it comes to cutting-edge trial techniques or approaching uncharted territory. The firm has regularly secured numerous record verdicts and settlements for injured clients throughout Florida. Among those verdicts is the largest verdict in Miami-Dade County history for a motor vehicle accident and the fourth-largest of its kind in the state.

That case involves the tragic death of a family’s daughter and the catastrophic injury to their son at the hands of a reckless drunk driver who was speeding down the wrong side of I-95. The family was on their way to the airport to drop off their daughter, 23, for a flight to attend her medical school’s orientation. She died as a result of the collision.

Their son sustained life-altering injuries and was left unable to speak, needing a wheelchair, and requires round-the-clock care. This driver’s careless and negligent actions changed the lives of this unwitting family forever after he was overserved at a popular Miami bar.

At trial, a jury awarded over $95 million to the family — $57 million of which would go to the son and the remaining $38 million to the parents.

Previous Cases

Leesfield & Partners has a long history of representing Florida victims of crashes involving motor vehicles, trucks, motorcycles, pedestrians and more. In that time, our attorneys have achieved record verdicts and settlements on behalf of these injured clients and their grieving families.

Partner Justin B. Shapiro previously represented a family in a wrongful death motor vehicle case involving a pedestrian. A verdict of over $36 million was obtained for the family in that case.

In a case involving road construction that resulted in a crash, Leesfield & Partners attorneys obtained $29.7 million.

Ira Leesfield, the firm’s Founder and Managing Partner, obtained a $19.8 million verdict against Honda in a design defect case involving a motorcycle kickstand. In that case, our client was in the middle of a ride when the kickstand deployed and caused his motorcycle to spin out of control. He was paralyzed as the result of this violent collision.

This was the start of litigation against multiple manufacturers involving the same dangerous design defect handled by Mr. Leesfield on behalf of injured clients.

Leesfield & Partners previously represented the families of three teenage girls after they were struck by a commercial truck driver making an illegal U-turn on the turnpike. The girls in that case were on their way to the library when the driver turned directly into their path. Tragically, one girl was killed and the other two sustained serious injuries.

Our attorneys worked tirelessly to settle the case for over $8.6 million for the families. The firm also obtained an over $7.6 million arbitration award for the family who lost their daughter.

In the case of a woman who was walking back to her office following a midday break, Mr. Shapiro secured the maximum recoverable amount set forth in the defendant’s insurance policy limits. The woman was crossing the street in a marked crosswalk when a pickup truck driver made an illegal left turn, claiming to not have seen her. Injuries to our client included skull fractures and brain hemorrhages in addition to injuries to her left leg.

A $6 million settlement was secured for the client in that case.

Previously, Leesfield & Partners represented a Fort Lauderdale family whose son was hit by a car while he tried to cross the street. The child’s head hit the pavement with the impact of the crash, and he sustained a traumatic brain injury.

A $1.2 million settlement was obtained for the family in that case.

Bernardo Pimentel II, a Trial Attorney at the firm, secured a $1 million recovery for a family involved in a fatal car crash at the hands of a negligent driver.

Trial Attorney Evan Robinson secured a six-figure settlement for a client injured in a Monroe County crash.

In an ongoing case, Carlos A. Fabano, a Trial Attorney at the firm, is representing a pedestrian who was severely and permanently injured by a negligent driver.