U.S. automaker Tesla (TSLA.O) said on Sunday it will help Chinese police look into a crash involving one of its Model Y cars after local media reports said three were injured and two people lost their lives when the driver lost control of the car.
The incident on November 5 in the southern province of Guangdong took the lives of a motorcyclist and a high school girl, Jimu News reported, uploading a video of a car driving at high speed crashing into a cyclist and other vehicles.
“Police are currently seeking a third-party appraisal agency to identify the truth behind this accident and we will actively provide any necessary assistance,” Elon Musk’s electric vehicle maker told Reuters in a message on Sunday, warning against believing “rumors”.
China is Tesla’s second-biggest market, and the crash was among the main trending topics on the Weibo social media platform on Sunday.
Jimu News quoted traffic police as saying the cause of the incident in Chaozhou city had not been determined and an anonymous family member of the driver said the 55-year-old had issues with the brake pedal when he was about to come to a stop in front of his family store.
Tesla said videos indicated that the car’s brake lights were not on when the car was speeding and that its data indicated issues such as there being no action to hit the brakes throughout the vehicle’s journey.
Calls to police in Raoping, the county where the accident took place, were not responded to on Sunday. Tesla has faced allegations of brake failure in China before.
In its statement to Reuters, the company said a Chinese car owner had been instructed by a court to publicly give an apology and compensate the firm after it ruled that remarks he had made to the media about issues with his brakes were contrary to the facts and had damaged Tesla’s reputation.
Reporters could not instantly confirm Tesla’s assertion.
Buy Crypto NowIn 2021, a displeased customer spurred a social media stir by climbing on top of a Tesla at the Shanghai auto show to protest the company’s addressing of her complaints about malfunctioning brakes involved in a car accident.
In that instance, Tesla said speeding violations were responsible for her crash but vowed to improve how it handled customer complaints.
