Tesla sued over Cybertruck door defects in fatal California accident

In the lawsuit, families claim passengers were trapped inside a burning Cybertruck, citing electronic door failures and nearly impenetrable 'armor glass' windows as key hazards

Tesla Inc is facing new lawsuits over claims that defects in the doors of a Cybertruck contributed to the deaths of three college students in a November 2024 crash in Piedmont, California. The complaints say the vehicle’s electronic doors prevented the passengers from escaping, turning a crash that might have been survivable into a fatal fire.

 

The families of 20-year-old Jack Nelson and 19-year-old Krysta Tsukahara allege that Tesla was aware of the risks with its Cybertruck door handles but failed to fix them. The Nelson family’s complaint stated that the Cybertruck’s design defects had turned what might have been a survivable crash into a fatal fire, according to a Bloomberg report.

 

Details of the Piedmont crash

The Cybertruck, carrying four students home for Thanksgiving, was reportedly speeding at more than 80 miles (129 km) per hour at around 3 am, when it veered off the road, hitting a tree and a retaining wall, then catching fire. Toxicology reports showed the driver had high levels of alcohol and drugs in his system.

 

Matt Riordan, a friend driving behind the Cybertruck, tried to rescue the passengers. He managed to pull one front-seat passenger to safety, but could not reach Tsukahara in the back, who died in the fire.

Door design made it a ‘death trap’

Cybertruck doors have no exterior handles. They open using electronic buttons on the pillars, which may fail if the vehicle loses power. Interior manual releases exist, but are hard to find, especially for rear passengers. The lawsuits also note that the “armor glass” windows and stainless-steel doors made it very difficult to break in and rescue the passengers. 

  Tesla doors have been under scrutiny for years after reports of people trapped following crashes. Bloomberg News found over 140 complaints to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) since 2018 about Tesla doors not opening or getting stuck. The NHTSA is investigating possible defects, including incidents where children were trapped. Tesla’s design chief said the company is redesigning door handles to be easier to use in emergencies.

Tesla’s legal history

Elon Musk, Tesla’s CEO, has often said Tesla cars are among the safest on the road. But the company faces growing lawsuits blaming its technology for fatal accidents, including cases of post-crash entrapment and problems with Autopilot.

 

Tesla won two Autopilot-related trials in 2023. However, in July 2023, a Miami jury ordered Tesla to pay $243 million after a 2019 Model S crash killed a woman and seriously injured her boyfriend. The company has also settled several other cases before trial.

Legal claims and proceedings

Both new lawsuits, filed in Alameda County Superior Court, accuse Tesla of negligence and seek damages along with compensation for the families. The Nelson case also lists the driver’s estate as a defendant, a legal requirement clarified by the family. The Tsukahara trial is scheduled for February 2027. Lawyers emphasise that, although other factors contributed to the crash, Tesla’s alleged design flaws significantly worsened its impact.