Tesla thinks so.
Tesla claims that you are 7 times less likely to be in an accident when Autopilot is engaged. I would tend to believe then. Tesla has been tracking statistics for quite a while now, logging millions of miles of data.
They release these findings to the public every quarter. In the last quarter of 2020, Tesla released this update
“In the 4th quarter, we registered one accident for every 3.45 million miles driven in which drivers had Autopilot engaged. For those driving without Autopilot but with our active safety features, we registered one accident for every 2.05 million miles driven. For those driving without Autopilot and without our active safety features, we registered one accident for every 1.27 million miles driven. By comparison, NHTSA’s most recent data shows that in the United States there is an automobile crash every 484,000 miles.”
This marks an improvement over the previous quarter.
You do need to take this data with a grain of sale, however, as it doesn’t paint a complete picture. Typically most drivers use Autopilot on highways and byways, but not as much on city streets where a lot of minor accidents still occur. It doesn’t appear that Tesla is comparing apples to apples.
On the other hand, of Autopilot was used more frequently on city streets, and more so when using the new full self-driving features, it’s quite possible that we could see that figure go past the 7X stat Tesla claims.
There is no doubt that Autopilot can do wonders when a driver is distracted by always watching when the driver is not.
Combined with an attentive driver, it is clear that Autopilot is safer than without.
One of the biggest aspects of autopilot safety is on the highway during long drives. Driver fatigue is a major issue. Having just done a 2000 km drive I can attest to that. I’m getting old and sitting there focusing on the road for that that long really tires you out.
Having the backup of the car handle the steering braking even for a little bit really helps take the edge off. Knowing the car is also checking its surroundings none stop instead of trying to get my kids fallen lunch off the floor is also a huge benefit.