Tesla driver reportedly asleep as Full Self-Driving hits patrol car
A Tesla driver told California Highway Patrol he was asleep and using the car’s Full Self-Driving assistance when it crashed into a parked patrol vehicle at an earlier accident scene. Video shows the Tesla passing flares, cones and emergency lights before the collision; two officers were seriously injured and taken to hospital. The crash has renewed attention on the limits of driver-assistance technology and drivers’ responsibility to stay in control.
CHP said Full Self-Driving is not fully autonomous and does not remove drivers’ duty to operate their vehicles safely. After numerous crashes involving parked emergency vehicles, US safety regulator NHTSA opened an investigation into Tesla’s Autopilot in 2021. It later linked driver-assistance failures to hundreds of crashes and dozens of deaths, and opened a further investigation after Tesla added driver-monitoring controls and alerts in 2023.
- A Tesla using Full Self-Driving hit a parked patrol vehicle.
- Two officers were seriously injured.
- US regulators have questioned Tesla’s driver-monitoring safeguards.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Driver-assistance systems can reduce fatigue and help prevent collisions, but they are not autonomous and still require an attentive driver who can respond to hazards. The reported crash, especially the apparent failure to react to prominent emergency warnings, supports the view that drivers must remain responsible for safe operation and that technology should not encourage them to disengage.
The case against
A driver’s duty does not settle whether the system and its safeguards are adequate: repeated crashes involving emergency vehicles and regulatory scrutiny support calls for stronger monitoring, clearer limits and safer system design. If a product’s name or behaviour leads users to overestimate its capabilities, manufacturers and regulators also have a responsibility to reduce that risk, alongside individual driver accountability.
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Originally published by The Verge as “Tesla driver says he was asleep and using FSD when he crashed into highway patrol cars”.