02-08-2025
Tesla ordered by Florida jury to pay $243 million in fatal Autopilot crash
2 Aug 2025 09:18
(THE NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE)A Florida jury found Friday that flaws in Tesla's self-driving software were partly to blame for a crash that killed a 22-year-old woman in 2019 and severely injured the driver. The verdict is a significant setback for the carmaker, which is staking much of its future on developing self-driving jury verdict, if upheld on appeal, would require Tesla to pay as much as $243 million in punitive and compensatory damages to the parents of the woman and the jury found that Tesla bore 33% responsibility for the crash, and blamed the driver, George Brian McGee, for the rest. McGee had previously settled with the family for an undisclosed said it would appeal.'Today's 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 lifesaving technology,' the company said in a said it expected the damages to be reduced on appeal.'Florida law is explicit that punitive damages have been all but eliminated in product liability cases such as this one,' the company said. 'We are confident that the punitive damage award at a minimum, and likely this whole verdict, will be overturned by the appellate court.'The decision comes just weeks after Tesla began limited testing of autonomous taxis in Austin, Musk, the company's CEO, said in a conference call with investors in July that the service could cover half the population of United States by the end of the has said that Tesla's growth hinges on revenue from autonomous taxis and humanoid robots rather than car sales, which have been trial, in US District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami, focused attention on the safety of Tesla's driver-assistance system, known as was the first federal jury trial stemming from a fatal accident involving Autopilot. Tesla has won at least one similar case filed in a California court and settled several others. At least five more are pending, according to lawyers for the plaintiffs.
McGee was approaching a T-intersection with Tesla's Autopilot software activated when he dropped his phone and bent to look for it. The Tesla blew through the intersection at more than 50 mph and crashed into a black SUV legally parked on the far side, according to testimony.
McGee told police after the crash that he did not notice the intersection or the stop sign said on the witness stand that he thought Autopilot would protect him and prevent a serious crash if he made a lawyers blamed McGee for the crash.
Federal safety officials were aware of at least 211 accidents from 2018 to 2023 involving Tesla cars operating with Autopilot engaged, according to evidence presented during the trial.
