Tesla fights liability in door malfunction claim in Wisconsin car crash

Tesla is facing new legal troubles after five people died in a fatal crash involving its Model S. This continues the scrutiny on the safety of the automaker’s products following several fatal crashes and incidents of passengers being trapped in their cars following crashes. 

Tesla Inc. is facing another major lawsuit after a Wisconsin family accused the automaker of negligence in a crash that killed five people. The case claims that Tesla’s Model S’s electronic doors failed to open after the vehicle caught fire, trapping the occupants inside.

A Wisconsin family is suing Tesla over a fatal crash 

The lawsuit, filed Friday in a Wisconsin state court, is based on a crash that happened last November that killed Jeffrey Bauer, 54, and Michelle Bauer, 55, along with three others. According to the complaint filed by the couple’s children, the Bauers initially survived the impact when their Tesla sedan hit a tree, but were unable to escape the vehicle before it was engulfed in flames.

A nearby homeowner who called 911 reported hearing screams from inside the burning car. A sheriff’s report described a cluster of bodies in the front seat, suggesting the victims tried to escape but couldn’t open the doors.

“Tesla’s design choices created a highly foreseeable risk — that occupants who survived a crash would remain trapped inside a burning vehicle,” the family’s lawyers said.

The suit accuses Tesla of negligence and argues that the company was aware of risks tied to its electronic door handles and the potential for battery fires, but did not act to fix them. 

The case has sparked a debate over the safety of Tesla’s handle design. The automaker makes use of retractable electronic handles that rely on power from the vehicle’s low-voltage battery. If that system fails during a crash, doors must be opened manually from inside, but many owners are unfamiliar with this method.

The Dane County Sheriff’s Office found that speed, road conditions, and possible impairment contributed to the crash. Despite that, the plaintiffs argue that vehicle manufacturers must ensure the protection of passengers during and after a collision, including allowing escape in a fire.

“Regardless of the cause of a crash, the manufacturer’s obligation includes designing vehicles that permit timely escape and rescue in the event of fire.”

Tesla is also facing a suit in California filed by the families of three college students who allege that a similar design flaw led to their deaths in a fiery crash last year.

Regulators in the U.S., Europe, and China address the dangers

After several similar incidents of passengers getting trapped in their cars due to Tesla’s door design, regulators across multiple regions are taking action.

Cryptopolitan reported earlier in October that the Dutch Vehicle Authority (RDW) revised its approval rules for all Tesla models sold in the European Union after reports of people getting trapped inside their cars after crashes, particularly when power systems fail. 

In the U.S., the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched an investigation into Tesla’s Model Y to determine whether the design fails in emergencies and violates federal safety standards.

At that time, Tesla’s chief designer, Franz von Holzhausen, told Bloomberg that the company was working on a redesign of the handle to make it more “intuitive for occupants in a panic situation.” So far, there has been no update on a release date for the redesign. 

Chinese regulators are considering a national mandate that requires every passenger car to have mechanical door releases that work both inside and outside, even if the vehicle loses power.

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