Autopilot and autonomous driving claims by Tesla are being questioned again, this time by the California Department of Motor Vehicles in a complaint filed July 28.
The complaint alleges that the company made “untrue or misleading” statements in advertisements on its website, alleging that Tesla vehicles were or could be equipped with advanced driver assistance system features.
Tesla’s ads ran in marketing materials on the company’s website “on at least five dates” between May 2021 and July 2022, according to the complaint.
They included descriptions like “autopilot” and “full autonomous driving capability” and used words like “all you have to do is get in and tell your car where to go…your Tesla will figure out the optimal route, navigating urban streets, complex intersections and highways,” the suit said.
Another claim that the California DMV says is misleading read: “The system is designed to be able to perform both short- and long-distance trips without requiring action by the person in the driver’s seat.”
“These ads are a deceptive practice” under the California Civil Code, the DMV complaint said. Tesla does not typically respond to requests for comment.
The company published disclaimers through June, warning that the appeals still require active driver oversight, which contradicts the “misleading labels and claims,” the complaint added.
The company’s publicity actions could cause it to temporarily lose its manufacturer’s license and license plate number in California, the complaint warned.
Data released in June by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found there had been 273 accidents over the past nine months involving Tesla’s driver assistance technologies, caused by its “full autonomous driving” software or its precursor, Tesla Autopilot.
Of the total of 497 accidents studied by the NHTSA, 43% of those caused by driver assistance technologies occurred in California, according to the data.
Tesla’s “Autopilot” feature is standard on all of its vehicles, making it one of the most used autopilot systems in the industry. While the company reminds drivers to stay alert while using it, a 2021 MIT study revealed that users who used the system were more distracted and looked away from the road more often than when driving without the feature.
Tesla has 15 days to respond to the complaint to avoid a default decision. The department said this complaint is separate from an ongoing review of the vehicles’ intended design and technological capabilities. The Los Angeles Times was the first media outlet to report the complaint.
Source: CNN Brasil
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