Written by Hyunjoo Jin
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The parents of a motorcyclist killed in a 2022 crash with a Tesla Model 3 on Autopilot in Utah have sued the electric car maker and the car’s driver, alleging that its driver assistance software and other safety features were “defective and inadequate.”
Landon Embry, 34, died at the scene after a Model 3 with Autopilot engaged at 75-80 mph struck the rear of his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, throwing him from the bike, according to the lawsuit filed in state court in Salt Lake City last week.
The lawsuit alleges that the Model 3 driver was “tired” and “not in a condition to drive like a normally prudent driver.”
The complaint said that automated driving sensors such as cameras “should have identified the danger posed by the decedent’s motorcycle in its presence.”
“A reasonably careful driver, or an adequate automatic braking system, could have slowed or stopped without hitting the motorcycle,” the complaint said.
Tesla could not immediately be reached for comment.
The lawsuit adds to growing scrutiny of Tesla’s driver-assistance systems, Autopilot and Full Self-Driving.
A Tesla Model S was in “full self-driving” mode when it struck and killed a 28-year-old motorcyclist in the Seattle area in April of this year, police said this week.
In April, Tesla settled a lawsuit over a 2018 crash that killed an Apple (NASDAQ:) engineer after his Model X, which was running Autopilot, veered off a freeway near San Francisco.