On December 22, a Bloomberg investigation unveiled a disturbing trend: over the past ten years, a minimum of 15 individuals in the U.S. have lost their lives in accidents where Tesla doors refused to open. Tesla car owners have persistently voiced their grievances regarding door-related problems through regulatory bodies, social media platforms, and legal avenues. These complaints span a wide spectrum, from minor, everyday malfunctions to catastrophic accidents.
Take, for instance, the tragic incident in November 2024, when a Tesla Model S collided with a tree and burst into flames in Wisconsin, claiming the lives of five people. The families of the victims subsequently filed a lawsuit against Tesla, citing door design flaws as a contributing factor. In the same year, another heart-wrenching accident occurred in California, involving a Cybertruck. Three college students perished after being trapped inside the vehicle, as the doors failed to open.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has been inundated with over 140 complaints related to this issue. In September 2025, the agency initiated an investigation into door defects affecting 174,000 Model Y vehicles. Despite Tesla's assertion that its vehicles are equipped with manual unlocking mechanisms, some designs are so inconspicuously placed that users struggle to locate and operate them, thereby fueling safety concerns and controversies.