The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a key American regulatory body, has launched an investigation into Tesla. Elon Musk`s prominent electric vehicle company stands accused of deliberately concealing data pertaining to accidents involving its self-driving vehicles, a development first reported by The Verge. Under stringent U.S. federal laws, operators of autonomous vehicles are unequivocally mandated to promptly inform the government of any traffic accidents that occur.
According to documents released by the regulator, Tesla is legally obligated to report such incidents within a narrow timeframe of 1 to 5 days. However, officials have presented evidence suggesting that in numerous cases, notifications to authorities were delayed significantly, sometimes by several months. These substantial reporting delays have consequently led to serious accusations that the company made concerted efforts to hide crucial information about these incidents. In its defense, Tesla has attributed the prolonged delays to complex challenges encountered in the process of collecting accident data.
Further data from the NHTSA reveals a concerning trend: since the relevant safety regulations officially came into effect in 2021, Tesla has disclosed information on 2,300 accidents. All these reported incidents occurred with the brand`s vehicles while they were actively operating under autonomous driving systems. More strikingly, a significant finding indicates that an overwhelming 40 out of the total 43 registered fatal accidents during this period were also directly linked to Tesla vehicles.
Rupert Blackwood 
Barnaby Whitfield