Tesla cooperating with Chinese authorities after accident killed police officer

By REUTERS | 18 May 2021


Visitors looking at a China-made Tesla Model Y electric vehicle at 2021 Auto Shanghai last month. In the latest troubles for Tesla, a Model Y was linked to the death of a police officer in China. — Bloomberg


BEIJING: Tesla Inc said today it would work with authorities to investigate a car accident in China that local police said caused the death of a police officer and injured another.

A video circulated on China's Twitter-like Weibo and in local state media showed a Tesla Model X next to two police officers lying on the ground after an accident.

The driver of the vehicle involved in the Monday accident has been detained, police in the eastern city of Taizhou said in a post without explaining the circumstances of the accident.

News of accidents involving Tesla cars in China have gone viral on social media in recent weeks after an unhappy customer made headlines by clambering atop a Tesla at the Shanghai auto show to protest the company's handling of her complaints.

China is the electric car maker's second-biggest market, accounting for about 30% of its sales.

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