US President-elect Donald Trump's team has proposed to repeal a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) rule requiring automakers to report accidents involving cars equipped with automated driving systems. This was reported by Reuters, referring to an internal document, UNN reports.
Details
Tesla, as noted, may benefit the most from this decision, as it reports such incidents much more often than other automakers. According to the NHTSA, Tesla reported more than 1,500 accidents using autopilot in 2023, while its closest competitor, Honda, reported just over 100. In addition, of the 45 fatal accidents reported under the rule, 40 involved Tesla.
The Full Self-Driving (FSD) and Autopilot functions are key to Tesla founder Elon Musk's desire to create cars that can drive autonomously in any conditions. However, the software still requires constant driver supervision due to the risk of serious errors.
The NHTSA has repeatedly investigated accidents involving Tesla autopilots. It is currently testing the effectiveness of FSD systems in difficult conditions, such as fog or bright sunlight. One of the reasons for the latest investigation was a fatal accident in Arizona, where a Tesla hit a pedestrian. The agency's preliminary findings indicated that Tesla's systems did not provide adequate control of the driver's attention when using autopilot.
The current NHTSA rule requires all companies to report accidents in which second-level driver assistance systems (such as Tesla's autopilot) were used 30 seconds before the incident.
We are talking about cases that:
- led to the death of a person,
- required a car to be towed,
- were accompanied by the deployment of airbags,
- or required hospitalization.
Now, the Trump team calls this rule "excessive" and proposes to cancel it, which will make it much more difficult to assess the safety of Tesla and other companies' autopilots.
There is currently no confirmation whether Tesla directly influenced this initiative. However, Musk has previously harshly criticized the NHTSA for inspecting Tesla's autopilots and even threatened legal action. According to Reuters, the company has repeatedly expressed disagreement with the collection of this data, as it undermines its claim to create the "safest cars in the world.
Recall
The US Securities and Exchange Commission is preparing "numerous charges" against Elon Musk .