Tesla Hit with $42 Million Verdict: Indiana Jury Finds Elon Musk's EV Giant And Employ Liable in Ford Truck Crash Case

Mar 16, 202404:14 UTC

An Indiana jury on Friday ruled EV giant Tesla TSLA and one of its employees are partly liable for a 2017 crash involving a company-owned Ford truck and a motorcyclist. The electric vehicle manufacturer and the employee, Kyle Kaszuba, have been ordered to pay over $42 million in damages to the victim.

What Happened: The crash, which occurred in 2017, resulted in severe injuries to the motorcyclist Christopher Dugan, including a partial amputation, permanent disfigurement, and a traumatic brain injury, CNBC reported.

Dugan’s legal team had been seeking $191 million in damages. However, the jury found him to be 30% responsible for the crash, subsequently bringing down the award, the report said.

As per Dugan’s initial complaint, the Tesla employee was operating a 2014 Ford Super Duty when he crashed with Dugan’s motorcycle near a gas station in Indianapolis. The accident victim’s attorney alleged that the employee was in a rush to get to work.

Tesla did not respond to Benzinga‘s request for comment at the time of publishing this report.

Why It Matters: This verdict comes at a time when Tesla is facing other legal and financial challenges. The company is currently dealing with a lawsuit over CEO Musk’s $56 billion pay package, with lawyers seeking $6 billion in Tesla shares as compensation for challenging the package.

Despite these challenges, some analysts remain optimistic about Tesla’s future. RBC Capital Markets analyst Tom Narayan believes that the company is awaiting the next big boost from its affordable car, expected to be priced below $30,000 and start production in the second half of 2025.

On the other hand, Tesla recently announced a price hike for all Model Y variants, starting in April, in a move to encourage customers to place their orders before the quarter ends.

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Read More: Ford CEO Jim Farley Reveals How A Lake Tahoe Family Trip Led Him To Secure Deal With Tesla For Supercharger Network Access: ‘It Became Pretty Clear...'

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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