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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla vehicles equipped with the full self-driving technology due to safety regulation breaches following numerous accidents.

Regulatory Body Identifies Traffic Law Breaches

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stated that the automaker's self-driving assistance system, which requires motorists to stay alert and intervene if needed, had “induced car behavior that breached road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the first step before possibly requesting a withdrawal of the vehicles if the agency concludes they present a danger to public safety.

Alarming Incident Reports

The agency reported it had documented accounts of 2.88 million Tesla cars running red lights and traveling against the incorrect direction during lane changes while operating the system.

NHTSA stated it has six reports in which a Tesla car, using full self-driving activated, “approached an intersection with a red light, continued to drive into the intersection despite the red light and was later part of a crash with other cars in the intersection”.

The agency noted that four accidents had caused injuries to occupants.

Further Safety Concerns

The NHTSA announced it has identified 18 complaints and one media report alleging that Tesla cars, driving through an junction with FSD active, did not stay stopped for the entire time of a red light, did not come to complete stop, or failed to accurately detect and display the proper traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Some complainants also stated that FSD “failed to give warnings of the technology's planned behaviour as the vehicle was coming to a red traffic signal”.

Continuing Official Examination

Tesla's FSD, which is more advanced than its Autopilot system, has been being examined by NHTSA for twelve months.

In October 2024, the agency began an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla vehicles using FSD after four documented crashes in situations of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, fog or airborne dust. One such accident, in 2023, was deadly.

Manufacturer's Official Stance

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “designed for use with a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is ready to take over at any moment. While these features are engineered to improve over time, the currently enabled features do not make the vehicle autonomous.”

Self-driving vehicle technology continue to face increased scrutiny from safety agencies as the technology advances and practical implementation reveals possible issues with current implementations.