Tesla faces another lawsuit. The California vehicle authority DMV accuses the company of having made false statements in its advertising for its autopilot. According to this, the US automaker is deceiving its customers by describing the autopilot and autonomous driving technologies as more powerful than they are. Tesla "made or disseminated statements that are untrue or misleading and not based on facts," it said. The autopilot and autonomous driving functions gave the impression that Tesla vehicles could actually drive autonomously. In reality, however, that is not the case. The DMV therefore submitted two complaints at the end of July, as reported by the US newspaper "Los Angeles Times".
The lawsuits could have far-reaching consequences for Tesla; licenses to manufacture or sell its cars in California are threatened to be revoked. However, it is considered unlikely that this will happen. Rather, the measures are likely to be much milder. A spokesman for the Vehicle Administration told the Los Angeles Times that if the lawsuit is successful, they will seek to require Tesla to "educate consumers and better educate Tesla drivers about the capabilities of its autopilot and autonomous driving features, including warnings about the limitations of the functions and that other measures are appropriate given the violations."
California Bureau of Public Affairs Deputy Director Anita Gore told CNBC that the DMV is also conducting a separate safety review "of the intended design and technical capabilities of Tesla vehicles" to verify whether they are allowed to drive on public roads without a special permit.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, on the other hand, emphasizes the capabilities of the systems. Accordingly, without the autonomous driving function, the company is “basically worth nothing”. It costs $12,000 and is said to be able to automatically control the vehicles, recognize traffic signs and park independently. However, the vehicle authority criticizes that cars could never be used as autonomous vehicles and "cannot now act as autonomous vehicles".
Teslas with Autopilot on have been involved in numerous parked ambulance accidents. The US transportation agency NHTSA has launched a total of 37 special investigations into accidents involving Tesla vehicles in which the driver assistance systems were activated and at least 18 people died. Most recently, NHTSA launched a special investigation into a motorcyclist accident in California last month. The US Department of Transportation has also launched an evaluation of the autopilot to see if the system is faulty and needs to be recalled.
Tesla has not yet responded to the latest lawsuits. The company has 15 days to respond to the allegations before the administrative court. Otherwise, the DMV will apply for a default judgment.
Sources: Los Angeles Times, CNBC
