Tesla has been found partly liable for a fatal 2019 crash involving its Autopilot system and ordered to pay more than $240 million in damages, marking a significant legal and reputational setback for the electric vehicle maker as it pushes to expand its self-driving technology.
According to reporting by the Financial Times, a U.S. federal jury ruled this week that Tesla was responsible for one-third of the accident in Florida, where a Model S traveling at 50 miles per hour ran through an intersection and collided with a parked car, killing a pedestrian and seriously injuring another.
The jury awarded $200 million in punitive damages, along with $19.5 million in compensatory damages to the family of the woman who died and $23.1 million to her injured boyfriend.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs argued that Tesla misled consumers about the capabilities of its driver assistance systems, creating a false sense of security and encouraging overreliance on features not designed for the conditions where they were used. The company, they said, failed to improve the software despite prior accidents and allowed drivers to engage Autopilot on roads where it wasn’t meant to operate.
“Tesla designed Autopilot only for controlled access highways yet deliberately chose not to restrict drivers from using it elsewhere,” said Brett Schreiber, one of the attorneys representing the victims. “Alongside Elon Musk telling the world Autopilot drove better than humans, Tesla’s lies turned our roads into test tracks for their fundamentally flawed technology.”
Tesla rejected the claims, arguing that the driver was at fault for being distracted — reportedly having dropped his phone — and for keeping his foot on the accelerator. The company emphasized that Autopilot requires drivers to remain alert at all times and has posted similar warnings in its user guidelines.
“This verdict is wrong and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardise Tesla’s and the entire industry’s efforts to develop and implement life-saving technology,” Tesla said in a statement, confirming it would appeal. CEO Elon Musk also posted on X that the company plans to challenge the ruling, calling the imposition of punitive damages a judicial error.
While Tesla has previously settled several Autopilot-related crash claims out of court and won in two state-level trials, this is the first time a federal jury has found the company liable for a fatal accident tied to its driver assistance technology.
The ruling comes as U.S. regulators continue to scrutinize Tesla’s approach to automation. A National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) analysis last year identified a “critical safety gap” in Tesla’s Autopilot that had “led to foreseeable misuse and avoidable crashes.”
Though the Florida incident involved an earlier version of the Autopilot software, legal experts suggest the verdict could carry broad implications for Tesla’s long-term strategy, especially as Musk touts plans for a future dominated by self-driving vehicles.
Musk has repeatedly promised investors that Tesla will deploy a fleet of robotaxis — fully autonomous vehicles with no steering wheels or pedals — as early as next year. The company has begun trialing its ride-hailing service in Austin, Texas, and this week announced a similar service in San Francisco, albeit with human drivers still behind the wheel due to regulatory limitations.
Tesla’s ambitions come at a time of declining vehicle sales and increasing political headwinds. President Donald Trump recently revoked federal subsidies for electric vehicles, and the U.S. imposed 25% tariffs on Indian imports after a trade deal fell through — a move that could also affect Tesla’s global positioning.
