Safe Vehicle Access for Survivors Act

Safe Vehicle Access for Survivors Act

This bill requires providers of connected vehicle services, upon the request of a domestic violence survivor, to terminate or disable an identified domestic abuser’s access to a vehicle’s connected capabilities and data.

Specifically, within two business days of receiving a request from a survivor, a covered provider must, if technically feasible (1) terminate or disable the connected vehicle account associated with the identified abuser or the relevant vehicle, or the vehicle’s connected capabilities; or (2) instruct the survivor on how to terminate or disable connected services directly.

Covered providers may not make the termination of connected vehicle services or accounts contingent on any requirement other than the provision of specified information by the survivor. For example, a provider may not require a survivor to pay a fee or extend their contract with the provider.

Under the bill, an abuser is an individual identified by a survivor who committed or allegedly committed certain acts against the survivor, including domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and sex trafficking. A survivor is an adult against whom such an act was committed. Further, a covered provider is a vehicle manufacturer, affiliate, or entity acting on behalf of a manufacturer that provides a connected vehicle service. Connected vehicle service is any capability that enables a person to remotely access data from or send commands to a vehicle.

Finally, the Federal Communications Commission must prescribe regulations governing how covered providers address survivors’ requests related to connected vehicles.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov