A Florida judge has ruled that a lawsuit accusing Tesla of overpromising on its vehicle’s Autopilot system can go to trial. The lawsuit was filed by Kim Banner when her husband, Jeremy Banner, was killed in 2019 after engaging the Autopilot system.
Banner was traveling on a South Florida road at about 70 mph when he activated his Tesla’s Autopilot system. Seconds after taking his hands on the steering wheel, Banner slammed into a semi-truck that turned onto his path.
His Tesla did not detect the truck, and neither the Autopilot system nor Banner adjusted the steering wheel to stay out of harm’s way. Banner crashed into the side of the 18-wheeler, causing the hood of his Tesla to shear off as he drove under the trailer.
Banner’s 23-page lawsuit highlights other cases in which other Tesla drivers using the Autopilot system were involved in fatal crashes. The lawsuit maintained that the popular electric car company “created a foreseeable zone of risk that posed a general threat of harm to others.”
The trucking company that was initially involved with the lawsuit settled with Banner’s widow in a confidential agreement and is no longer part of the lawsuit.
by Nadia El-Yaouti | Dec 01, 2023