California Attorney General is scouring Tesla over Autopilot safety and false advertising allegations, according to CNBC's information. A Tesla consumer, who had filed a grievance with the FTC, said in a statement that "Tesla ought to let customers receive a full refund for Autopilot functions if they are not delighted with the product." The customer revealed that he had been reached out to by the AG's workplace.The California Attorney General's office is probing Tesla, according to sources and documents obtained by CNBC, to gather information from customers and former employees regarding Autopilot safety issues and issues related to false advertising. This follows a complaint filed by Greg Wester, the owner of a 2018 Tesla Model 3, with the Federal Trade Commission in August 2022, contending that he had been experiencing "phantom braking" while using the company's driver assistance systems (Autopilot) on highways, as well as feeling misled after paying thousands of dollars for Tesla's premium driver assistance option labeled as Full Self Driving capability (FSD) in the United States. An analyst with the Attorney General's office left Wester a voicemail seeking to interview him about the issues included in the complaint, and CNBC confirmed the person who called was a government employee who did not request confidentiality.Issues of phantom braking, a problem that Tesla customers have complained about to federal agencies for years, have been known to leave drivers susceptible to rear-ending, and other potential dangers. Elon Musk has for some time been promising investors and customers that functions and features would be added via over-the-air software updates that would turn their cars into self-driving or autonomous vehicles, but to this day, the company has yet to deliver. Tesla currently only sells "level 2" systems which require the driver's attention and the ability to steer or brake at any time. In an interview, Wester expressed that Tesla should allow customers to receive a full refund of Autopilot features in the event that they are dissatisfied with the product. Additionally, an unnamed former employee of Tesla, whose family owns a 2021 Model 3 with the FSD option, was contacted by email in July 2023 by a senior legal analyst in the California Attorney General's Consumer Protection division.Tesla and the California Attorney General's office did not respond to requests for comment, while the FTC declined to comment. The Consumer Sentinel Network, an online database maintained by the FTC, allows law enforcement access to consumer complaints filed with the federal agency. According to its financial filing of the second quarter, Tesla has been receiving requests for information from a range of state, federal and international agencies, including the DOJ, with regards to Autopilot and FSD features. If the government brings forward an enforcement action, Tesla has warned that there is the possibility of material damage to its business, results of operations, prospects, cash flows and financial position.
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