In Miami, a federal jury has ordered Tesla to pay damages of $329,000,000 in relation to a deadly crash in 2019 that involved its Autopilot.
In the case heard by the Southern District of Florida jury, the verdict found that Tesla was partially liable for the accident which killed Naibel Benjamin, 22, and severely injured Dillon Angulo, her boyfriend.
This includes $129 Million in compensatory damages as well as $200 million punitive damages.
Originally, the attorneys for plaintiffs sought approximately $345,000,000.
The trial began on July 14 and centered around the use of Tesla’s Enhanced Autopilot feature in a non-highway setting–specifically, on a local road in Key Largo, Florida.
George McGee was the driver and owner of the Tesla Model S that had been involved in this incident. He activated Autopilot as he drove.
The driver testified that when he was using the auto-braking system, he accidentally dropped his phone and grabbed it. He expected the vehicle to automatically brake if an obstruction appeared.
The vehicle instead accelerated at a speed of more than 60 miles per hour through the intersection, hitting a nearby parked car and Benavides, as well as Angulo.
Benavides died at the scene. Angulo sustained serious injuries including multiple fractures and a traumatic head injury. He also suffered psychological damage.
Autopilot design, use and legal arguments are the focus of many legal disputes
The plaintiffs said that Tesla Autopilot was not restricted enough to road types.
Brett Schreiber is one of the lawyers for the plaintiffs. He argued Tesla was aware that Autopilot had been designed only for highways with controlled access, but did not limit its use.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla Motors Inc. also made public comments that Autopilot is safer than driving by a human.
Schreiber wrote in an email after the ruling that “Tesla’s lies made our roads test tracks for their flawed technology.”
These design and communications failures, he said, endanger drivers as well as pedestrians.
Tesla said in a response to NBC that it disagreed with jury decision and plans to appeal.
The company stated that the verdict was “wrong” and would only work to undermine automotive safety, and Tesla and industry efforts to implement and develop life-saving technologies.
Tesla’s impact on the entire industry
This ruling is timely as Tesla attempts to cement its leadership in the field of autonomous driving.
Elon Musk, Tesla’s CEO, has promoted Tesla’s plans to deploy robotaxis fleets. He has also emphasized Tesla’s ability to drive itself as the cornerstone for its future growth.
This verdict could have wider ramifications. Tesla is currently facing about 12 lawsuits that claim that Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems (Supervised), were in use during accidents that resulted in fatalities or serious injuries.
Since 2021, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has investigated Tesla’s technology for driver assistance.
Tesla is being evaluated to see if the software update addresses issues with stationary emergency vehicles, as well as other safety concerns.
Tesla’s shares dropped by 1,7% in the aftermath of Friday’s verdict.
Stocks are down by 20% in the past year, and this is the worst performer of all large-cap tech companies.
As new information becomes available, this post Tesla orders to pay $329M for fatal autopilot accident in Florida could be updated.
This site is for entertainment only. Click here to read more
