Tesla took heat in Germany with its Autopilot

Tesla’s use of the term “Autopilot” has been highly controversial, but for now, Justice still authorizes the company to use it. A recent decision in Germany reaffirms that the manufacturer is subject to the law.

In 2020, a court in Munich ruled against You are here By making a more or less expected judgment: Application of Terms ” Autopilot “and” Fully autonomous driving capability was wrong. Elon Musk’s company appealed, and as we’ve confirmed, the ruling on appeal was different Teslamag.de We were able to obtain the documents from the Higher Regional Court in Munich.

The use of the term autopilot is not illegal

The Center to Combat Unfair Competition filed a lawsuit against Tesla in 2019 based on what it said on the automaker’s website. In fact, at the time, the Center for the Fight Against Unfair Competition pointed it out The current formulas are misleading and therefore have no legitimacy to use.

Following a Munich court ruling in 2020, Tesla chose not to change its website, continuing to use the terms. Autopilot “and” Fully autonomous driving capability“. Instead, the American manufacturer’s legal teams wanted to appeal the decision, hoping to reverse it.

It appears to have paid off as the next instance of justice actually rendered the 2020 ruling obsolete. Autopilot “and” Fully autonomous driving capability » Tesla has the right to remain on the website, specifically the online vehicle configuration.

If the Center for Combating Unfair Competition wants to ban the term Autopilot, arguing that bystanders can be fooled into believing the vehicles are self-driving, the Munich Higher Regional Court thinks quite differently. According to him, People who are likely to buy You are here Aware of the system’s limitationsAnd you must always be aware of the road and be ready to regain control.

However, it wasn’t a complete success for Tesla, which was forced to change some elements of the language. For example, The court also wants Tesla to stop saying specific features “will be available by the end of the year” without confirming the timing. The American manufacturer now writes “coming soon” without further details Scams and spread of misinformations.

The German decision echoes an ongoing practice in the US, where the Department of Motor Vehicles in California is suing Tesla on similar grounds.

Being ahead of many manufacturers in terms of autonomous driving, Teslas are sometimes presented as vehicles with more capabilities than they actually can.
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