Tesla Threatened With A Fine Of Hundreds Of Million Dollars Due To Autopilot Fatal Accident

The wheelhouse of Tesla's electric car. (Photo: Tesla)

Tesla faced a crushing blow after a federal jury in Miami, United States ruled they were partly responsible for a 2019 fatal accident involving the Autopilot feature, with a potential fine of US$242.5 million (equivalent to Rp3.9 trillion).

Reuters and Carscoops reported on Saturday, August 2, this horrific incident occurred in 2019 when George totaled the Tesla Model S driver who was equipped with Autopilot, lost control of his vehicle after dropping the phone. With the belief that the car would brake automatically if it encounters a barrier,men tried to pick up his cell phone. However, instead of slowing down, the car was reported to have accelerated for more than 97 km/hour and hit a parked Chevrolet Tahoe. The collision tragically killed Naibel Benavides Leon and seriously injured his partner, totaled Angulo, who suffered a fracture and suffered a traumatic brain injury.

Then who's wrong? After going through years of protracted legal proceedings, the jury finally decided Tesla was responsible for 33 percent, meaning the electric car manufacturer had to pay $42.5 million in compensation and an additional $200 million in compensation.

Tesla itself plans to appeal and issue a strong statement calling the ruling false and will only hinder the progress of auto safety.

Tesla claimed there were legal errors and substantial irregularities in the trial. Furthermore, Tesla insisted that the evidence shows that the driver was completely guilty of speeding, with his foot on the gas pedal which ruled out Autopilot as he ransacked his phone that had fallen without seeing the road.

Obviously, said Tesla, there was no car in 2019, and no one today could prevent this accident. Tesla insists that this case was never about Autopilot but fiction created by the plaintiff's attorney who blamed the car even though the driver admitted and accepted responsibility from day one.

Unfortunately for Tesla, this decision comes as Tesla has just launched their robotics service, highlighting heated debates about the safety of autonomous vehicles and Autopilot's claim capabilities.