Tesla autopilot class action lawsuit overview:Â
- Who: A federal judge in California ruled a group of Tesla vehicle owners need to individually arbitrate claims the automaker misled consumers about the abilities of its autopilot feature.Â
- Why: The judge ruled the Tesla vehicle owners agreed to arbitrate claims against the automaker when they accepted the terms and conditions upon purchase of the vehicle.Â
- Where: The case is in California federal court.Â
A California federal judge ruled a group of Tesla vehicle owners accusing the automaker of misleading consumers about the capabilities of its autopilot feature will have to arbitrate their claims individually.Â
U.S. District Judge Haywood S. Gilliam Jr. ruled the Tesla owners agreed to arbitrate any claims against the automaker when they accepted terms and conditions presented to them when they purchased their Tesla vehicles through its website, Reuters reports.Â
An additional Tesla owner reportedly waited too long to file their claims against the automaker, the judge determined.Â
The Tesla vehicle owners argue the automaker repeatedly made false statements indicating its advanced driver assistance systems (ADS) technology was on the cusp of creating entirely self-driving vehicles, Reuters reports.Â
Tesla accused of charging customers thousands of dollars for ‘unreliable’ autopilot tech
The company is accused of charging customers thousands of dollars to purchase the optional ADS technology, which vehicle owners argue is unreliable and has caused accidents, according to Reuters.Â
The automaker denies any wrongdoing and argues the claims should be sent to arbitration because vehicle owners accepted the arbitration agreement when purchasing the vehicles, Reuters reports.Â
Judge Gilliam also reportedly rejected claims made by four of the vehicle owners that the arbitration agreements they signed were not enforceable.Â
A former Tesla employee filed a class action lawsuit last month, arguing they and thousands of other former Tesla workers had their personal information stolen during a data breach around May 10.Â
The plaintiff in that argues the automaker had a duty to protect the personal information of its employees.
Have you purchased a Tesla vehicle with an ADS system? Let us know in the comments.
The drivers are represented by Frank M. Pitre, Julie L. Fieber, Nabilah A. Hossain and Andrew F. Kirtley of Cotchett Pitre & McCarthy LLP; Francis A. Bottini Jr. and Nicholaus H. Woltering of Bottini & Bottini Inc.; and David S. Casey Jr., Gayle M. Blatt, Jeremy Robinson, P. Camille Guerra and Michael J. Morphew of Casey Gerry Schenk Francavilla Blatt & Penfield LLP.
The Tesla autopilot class action lawsuit is Briggs Matsko v. Tesla Inc., et al., Case No. 4:22-cv-05240, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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One thought on Tesla won’t have to face autopilot class action
I am actually in the beginning process of ‘arbitration’ with Tesla over this exact issue. I paid $25,000 up front, of the $36,000 Tesla wanted for a used CPO model 3. My dad is a disabled veteran and senior and we bought the car of this configuration to aid his mobility, thinking he could be more independent with the ability to have this car wit features it advertised. As soon as you get in the vehicle the info screen tells you the won’t do what you expect, and never will. The features such as smart summons and come to me are falsely advertised, before purchase a potential customer is told knowingly inaccurate information an then after you pay, you find out you don’t get what you thought you were paying for.