Schakowsky, Peters Request Answers from NHTSA on Efforts to Address Safety Risks Associated with Tesla’s Vehicles

WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09), a Senior Chief Deputy Whip and Chair of the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, Maritime, Freight and Ports, requested a staff briefing from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on how the agency is working to address its own June 15, 2022 report showing that Tesla vehicles were implicated in numerous crashes, including crashes involving serious injuries and five known deaths.

"This follows many other reports of avoidable safety problems with Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) features," wrote the Members of Congress in a letter to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Administrator Steven Cliff. "Federal investigations and recent reporting have uncovered troubling safety issues associated with these systems."

Tesla's vehicles come equipped with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) capable of providing features branded as "Autopilot" and "Full Self-Driving Capability." Autopilot enables the vehicle "to steer, accelerate, and brake automatically within its lane" and is supposed to be operated under active driver supervision. FSD is advertised as a system capable of conducting "short and long-distance trips with no action required by the person in the driver's seat."

The lawmakers asked, "Has NHTSA evaluated whether the marketing of these technologies may confuse consumers and promote unsafe behaviors with respect to Tesla vehicles?"

Furthermore, the lawmakers' letter requested information on the agency's approach to defect investigations that involve ADAS and whether the agency has "the authorities and resources it needs to evaluate and enforce the safety of emerging technologies including ADAS." The letter also probes fatal crashes of Tesla vehicles into tractor-trailers, including a recent incident in Florida in July 2022.

In June 2022, NHTSA expanded its investigation into Tesla's Autopilot driver-assist technology to reach nearly 830,000 Tesla cars and SUVs.

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