Self-driving cars have been involved in 400 crashes in 10 months, most of them Tesla-related

The United States has investigated the number of accidents involving semi-autonomous cars. Partially unmanned and driver assistance systems have been linked to 392 accidents in 10 months. The study was conducted by the National Road Safety Administration in July 2021 – May 2022.

Almost 70% of cases were Tesla cars on autopilot or the beta version of Full Self-Driving. 90 accidents involved Honda and another 10 – from Subaru. Other brands, including Ford, GM, VW and Toyota, had five or fewer cases. Autonomy level 2 or higher was activated while driving.

98 road accidents resulted in injuries, 11 of which were serious. Five Tesla cases were fatal. Of the 130 incidents involving unmanned systems, 108 involved other cars, and 11 involved cyclists and pedestrians.

Researchers warn that data alone cannot be used to make conclusions. There are about 830,000 Tesla autopilots in the United States, which may outnumber statistics because they are the most common semi-autonomous cars. Ford and GM have similar systems, but they are optional and less common on the road. Instead, autopilot is a standard feature of Tesla.

At the same time, statistics draw attention to incidents involving unmanned vehicles. Although Tesla claims that its autopilot is safer than driver-only control, the United States wants to understand the real security threats before taking driverless cars seriously.