Tesla Autopilot Warned Driver 7 Times Before Fatal Accident

A few months ago, Tesla was involved in several unfortunate cases of traffic accidents with drivers misusing the Autopilot in their cars. In one particular case, the driver died, which put a lot of heat on the company. Based on the investigations, however, it would seem that the fault lies entirely with the driver. It turns out that the car’s system warned him to put his hands on the steering wheel seven times before the crash.

The investigation in question was conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board, which spans several months of meticulous data-gathering and analysis. According to the report that the agency released, the Tesla car that killed Joshua Brown, 40, in May of last year actually warned him about not having his hands on the steering wheel several times.

These warnings also included audio cues, which would have been unmistakable to anyone even remotely paying attention while driving. By not abiding by the rules that Tesla itself set down and not heeding the notifications by his Model S, Brown died in the accident where his car slammed into a big-rig truck.

This new report echoes the sentiment expressed by investigators at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration when it exonerated Tesla of any wrongdoings back in January, The Loss Angeles Times reports. At the time, the agency even praised the company for including some astonishing safety features in its cars.

Specifics regarding the crash included the length of the drive, which amounted to 41 minutes. During that time, the Autopilot feature was engaged for a total of 37 minutes. Throughout the activation of the feature, it would appear that Brown only placed his hands on the wheel for a total of 25 seconds. This is what resulted in the fatal crash.

What’s more, the car warned Brown a final time six minutes before the crash occurred. According to witness testimony, the driver should have seen the truck a long time off if he had been paying attention.