July 28, 2022—A recent crash involving Tesla Autopilot has resulted in the death of a motorcyclist.
According to The Verge, a Tesla driver in Utah was using the Autopilot driver assistance system when they collided with the back of a motorcycle. The driver stayed at the scene and notified authorities that they had not seen the motorcyclist, who was thrown from the bike and killed instantly during the crash.
This crash has been added to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Special Crash Investigations list. On this list, there are 48 crashes total, and 39 involved Teslas. In regards to the Tesla crashes, 19 people were killed overall.
Additionally, the NHTSA is looking at 16 crashes involving Tesla Autopilot wherein the EVs crashed into stationary emergency vehicles. These crashes resulted in 15 injuries and one fatality.
The NHTSA has also reported that there were 273 crashes that involved Tesla Autopilot between the dates of July 20, 2021 and May 21, 2022.
The Verge article also pointed out that the process of looking into these crashes is extremely important due to Tesla essentially "beta testing" this Autopilot system in environments that can put others on the road in potential danger.
