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Jury orders Tesla to pay more than $240 million in Autopilot crash case

FLORIDA, AUG 4 – A Florida jury assigned Tesla 33% liability for a 2019 fatal crash caused by Autopilot distraction, ordering over $200 million in damages including $200 million punitive, experts testified.

  • A federal jury in Miami found Tesla liable for 33 percent of damages and ordered it to pay about $243 million over a 2019 Florida crash involving its Autopilot system.
  • The crash occurred when George McGee, the driver who was speeding and distracted by his cellphone, slammed into a parked SUV where a woman was killed and another person seriously injured.
  • The trial lasted three weeks and featured disputes over Tesla's Autopilot design, evidence handling, and Elon Musk's public claims about the technology's capabilities.
  • The jury assigned 67 percent blame to McGee but held Tesla responsible for full punitive damages totaling $200 million plus $43 million in compensatory damages due to Autopilot's failure to prevent the accident.
  • This verdict marks a rare legal loss for Tesla in an Autopilot fatality case, could increase industry liability risks, may prompt more lawsuits, and Tesla plans to appeal citing legal errors.
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Lean Left

The company was found partially guilty of a fatal crash in Miami, while the victim's family accuses concealment of evidence and the company announces that it will appeal the court decision

·Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Center

For the first time Tesla has been partially found guilty of a fatal accident in a Tesla car with the Autopilot activated, a severe blow to her robotaxis.

·Madrid, Spain
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Lean Left

The automaker describes the verdict as wrong and wants to appeal. The "self-driving" systems of the company of Elon Musk have been in criticism for years.

·Vienna, Austria
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Tech Spot broke the news in on Friday, August 1, 2025.
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