Insurers Race to Develop Coverage for Driverless Cars

Damage liability may shift from the driver to a wider list of providers as control of cars shifts from humans to computers

As federal investigators begin to examine a pedestrian fatality involving a self-driving Uber Technologies Inc. car this week, America’s car insurers are watching closely.

Car insurers haul in roughly $230 billion of premiums a year, but much of that intake could evaporate in coming decades, say some consultants, assuming crucial breakthroughs in driverless technology that would eliminate the many wrecks caused by human error.

The...