Tesla Autopilot Lawsuit is Filed

December 4, 2018
by We can Help Law

A lawsuit was filed in Florida alleging that Tesla has led its consumers to falsely believe that the autopilot feature on its cars is safe and safe to operate at high speeds.  The lawsuit alleges that the autopilot feature is not safe and therefore the feature can be dangerous and lead to car accidents.

 

The lawsuit was filed in Florida state court when an individual suffered significant injury after his 2017 Tesla Model S failed to detect a vehicle that was disabled in the lane of the highway in which the vehicle was traveling.  Specifically, a vehicle was disabled in the left lane of the highway and the Tesla vehicle that the plaintiff was in slammed into the disabled vehicle.

 

The lawsuit alleges that the autopilot has not been properly tested and that the consumers and drivers of the Tesla vehicles are being used as guinea pigs for this new technology.  The lawsuit further alleges that Tesla has not warned its customers that the autopilot feature is not safe to use at highway speeds as it cannot accurately detect stationary objects such as roadway hazards and disabled vehicles.

 

The consumer aspect of the Florida lawsuit alleges that the plaintiff sought out a vehicle to handle his long commute which was almost two hours per day.  When he saw Tesla ads promoting a vehicle to drive long distances with minimal human involvement, he went to the dealership to get more information. At the dealership, the sales representative sold the plaintiff the autopilot add on feature discussing its various safety features and benefits according to the lawsuit.  The plaintiff alleges that he was informed that all he had to do was place his hands on the steering wheel occasionally and the vehicle would do everything else.

 

The plaintiff has alleged that he suffered personal injuries and is seeking compensation for the injuries.  The plaintiff is represented by the national law firm of Morgan and Morgan.