American Regulators Begin Investigation into Self-Driving Tesla Vehicles After Series of Crashes

American vehicle safety authorities have started an probe into Tesla vehicles featuring the full self-driving technology due to safety regulation breaches following numerous accidents.

Regulatory Body Finds Safety Regulation Breaches

The NHTSA stated that the electric carmaker's self-driving assistance system, which requires motorists to remain attentive and intervene if needed, had “induced car behavior that violated traffic safety laws”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the first step before potentially seeking a recall of the cars if the agency concludes they pose a risk to public safety.

Alarming Incident Reports

The regulatory body reported it had documented accounts of nearly 3 million Tesla vehicles running red traffic lights and traveling in the wrong way during lane switching while operating the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six reports in which a Tesla car, operating with full self-driving activated, “came to an junction with a red light, continued to travel into the crossroads against the red light and was subsequently part of a collision with other cars in the junction”.

The agency noted that four accidents had caused one or more injuries.

Further Issues Identified

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 reports and one news account alleging that Tesla cars, operating at an intersection with FSD engaged, did not stay stopped for the duration of a red traffic signal, failed to stop fully, or failed to accurately detect and show the correct light status in the car's display”.

Some complainants also claimed that FSD “did not provide warnings of the system's intended behaviour as the car was coming to a red traffic signal”.

Ongoing Official Examination

Tesla's FSD, which is more sophisticated than its basic autopilot feature, has been being examined by NHTSA for twelve months.

In October 2024, the authority started an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars equipped with FSD after four reported collisions in conditions of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, fog or airborne dust. One such accident, in 2023, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “intended for use with a completely alert driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to take over at any time. While these capabilities are engineered to improve over time, the currently enabled features do not make the car self-driving.”

Self-driving vehicle technology continue to face increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies as the systems develop and real-world testing reveals possible issues with existing deployments.