A class action lawsuit is demanding Tesla pay up for allegedly deploying vehicles with a faulty collision warning system, which allegedly causes the vehicle to dangerously"phantom brake," at the wrong times.
Joshua Santiago on behalf of himself and others, filed a new class action against Tesla Inc. on March 14 in Cook County Circuit Court. Santiago is accusing Tesla of Breach of Warranty and violations of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act for allegedly misrepresenting and concealing certain facts regarding alleged false forward collision warnings that may cause the vehicle to abruptly stop during forward motion for no reason. They claim the alleged defect has had a detrimental effect on their Tesla insurance, which rewards good driving behaviors with lower premiums.
According to court documents, Tesla ignored the hundreds of complaints lodged with the National Highway Safety Safety Association and Tesla from concerned consumers who experienced alleged phantom braking. He contends they continued fraudulently selling and profiting from vehicles with the known issue at inflated prices without disclosing it to buyers. The suit asserts Tesla has taken no action to address the issue.
Santiago claims these alleged phantom braking events have resulted in out of pocket damages to owners enrolled in Tesla's insurance program forced to pay higher, non-refundable premiums allegedly resulting from these false events negatively impacting driving metrics.
Santiago asserts that Tesla is in breach of warranty for ostensibly selling vehicles warranted for an intended use that, because of the Safety Warning Defect, are now unfit for normal intended use.
Tesla has faced similar lawsuits.Tesla has been hit with a class action in September 2022 involving alleged Autopilot braking issues, and a 2019 battery throttling complaint settled in 2021, in which Tesla agreed to pay owners $625 each.
The U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Defects (USDOT OID) Safety Regulator has also opened an investigation March 24 into Model X SUVs from 2022 and 2023, after a USDOT OID filing was issued following complaints raised about front seatbelts in certain models disengaging from their linkage anchors when properly worn.
Santiago is seeking a jury trial, and actual and punitive damages, plus court costs and legal fees.
Santiago and the potential class of additional plaintiffs is represented by attorneys Eugene Y. Turin, Timothy P. Kingsbury, and Andrew T. Heldut, of McGuire Law P.C., of Chicago.