Tesla has been ordered to defend itself in a lawsuit alleging gross negligence with its self-driving technology, following a ruling by a Florida judge this week.
Judge Reid Scott of Palm Beach County found sufficient evidence to suggest that Tesla executives, including Elon Musk, were aware of issues with the company’s self-driving technology but allowed it to be released to the market regardless.
The lawsuit was filed by Kim Banner, the widow of Scott Banner, who tragically lost his life in a car crash in 2019 while using Tesla’s self-driving technology.
Court documents state that Banner’s Tesla Model 3 drove under the trailer of a semi-truck just 10 seconds after activating the autopilot function. The crash resulted in the top of Banner’s car being torn off, causing his death.
According to a report from the NTSB, the car did not apply the brakes at any point during or prior to the collision and collided with the semi-truck at a speed of 69 mph.
In the lawsuit, Ms. Scott alleges that Tesla continued to promote the safety of the technology despite evidence to the contrary.
Various federal and state agencies have launched investigations into Tesla’s self-driving technology, with some criticizing the company’s claims about the technology, although Tesla has also experienced victories in some cases.
Most recently, a California judge ruled that Tesla was not at fault for a serious crash that resulted in the injury of two passengers.
