Tesla Inc. faces increased scrutiny as federal investigators said Thursday they were investigating a fatal crash in Virginia that involved one of the company’s SUVs colliding with a tractor-trailer truck.
The accident, which occurred on July 19 in Fauquier County, Virginia, resulted in the death of a 57-year-old man driving a Tesla, the Fauquier Times reported. The electric vehicle crashed into a tractor-trailer that left a truck stop, the newspaper said.
The probe comes as the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is in the midst of a series of investigations targeting Tesla, its products and its chief executive officer, Elon Musk. Federal regulators are looking into possible problems with the company’s seat belts, steering wheels and driver assistance features.
The crash was the 54th involving NHTSA’s Special Crash Investigation into advanced driver-assistance systems like Tesla’s Autopilot. The broader investigation began in 2016 after a fatal accident in Florida involving a Model S that had been driven with its automatic driving system activated.
Tesla vehicles were involved in all but nine of the incidents added to the NHTSA investigation. The automaker, which has disbanded its media relations department, did not respond to a request for comment.
Copyright 2023 Bloomberg.
Topics
Virginia Tesla
Is this article valuable?
Here are several articles you may enjoy.
The most important insurance news, in your inbox every business day.
Get the trusted insurance industry newsletter
