How about this. Precautions are easier than lawsuits and cheaper than hospital bills.
The person near the bot often has a good chance of not knowing what tit is capable of. The driver may not know every nuance of the programming and mechanisms, and may bump the joysticks (maybe from being bumped by someone else).
I know as a driver at competitions and demos, I want a few feet around the robot unless I know the controls won't get bumped, then people can touch the robot
when its on!
Frankly it comes down to if your team wants a Barret-Jackson don't-you-dare-touch-that-bolt robot, that's fine. If your team wants a petting zoo bot, be careful.