Fatal Autopilot Crash: Tesla is late to submit data to NHTSA, receives 1-week extension

The tragic death of 45-year-old Joshua Brown might go down in history as one of the most widely reported car accidents. And it’s not over. Brown died on May 7, 2016 in Florida, when his Tesla Model S on Autopilot went under the trailer of an 18-wheel semi and the roof of his car was torn off by the impact.

Following the crash,  the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched a preliminary evaluation in Tesla’s Autopilot system. As part of the evaluation, NHTSA requested a lot of information from Tesla, which the company had to submit by August 26.

The deadline has passed, but NHTSA reportedly gave Tesla an extension.

Business Insider talked to NHTSA:

“Tesla did not complete the information request on time, asking NHTSA for a one-week extension. A NHTSA spokesperson told Businesss Insider that Tesla was granted the extension and that Tesla must submit the requested data by Friday.”

As we reported last month, the list of information requested by NHTSA was extensive. Here are just the most notable points:

• The detailed list of all of Tesla’s Autopilot capable vehicles including the VIN, model, model year, total mileage with Autosteer on, total number of “Hands on Wheel” Autosteer warnings records, etc.
• The list of all consumer complaints, field reports, reports involving a crash, property damage claims and lawsuits.
• To describe all past, present or future analyses and studies that pertain to or are possibly related to the alleged defect.
• And to describe any and all modifications to Tesla’s vehicles that may or may not relate to the alleged defect.

NHTSA is only one of a few authorities looking into the accident. The Florida Highway Patrol has its own investigation and the National Transportation Safety Board Office of Public Affairs (NTSB) is also investigating. It released a preliminary report on the accident last month.