Tesla sued over Cybertruck deaths due to electronic door malfunction
A lawsuit has been filed against Tesla after a 2024 Cybertruck crash in Piedmont, California, left three people dead and one survivor seriously injured.
Jordan Miller, the survivor, says he was trapped inside because the truck's electronic doors, lacking outside handles, wouldn't open after an electrical failure caused by the crash.
He escaped only after a friend broke the window with a tree branch, but others couldn't be reached in time.
Miller's injuries were severe
Miller's injuries were severe: burns to his lungs and limbs, major surgery on his colon, and spinal fractures needing implants.
His lawsuit claims Tesla knew about similar entrapment risks for more than 10 years but didn't fix them.
Tesla denies any design flaws and blames possible driver misuse.
Federal safety regulators, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, have opened or are reviewing investigations into Tesla door systems (for example, probes involving certain Model Y and Model 3 vehicles), with another similar case reported in Texas.
The outcome could impact future Tesla designs.