The point you make here is more than correct and extremely actual: in order for the society to accept autonomous vehicles, many discussions regarding legislation, insurances and road rule should be done. These problems are being discussed in the great majority of talks and symposiums regarding autonomous driving. In my opinion, the person riding the car shouldn't be treated differently from someone riding a bus or a taxi. It's crucial however that the car makers establish rules on maintenance, because the only case in which an autonomous car fails is when the programmer fails.