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Wang v. Tesla Inc.

Dismissal of Fraud Claim Arising From Crash Involving Tesla 'Autopilot' Feature Explained

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MEMORANDUM & ORDER Plaintiff Wai-Leung Chan was involved in a car accident while driving a vehicle he purchased from Defendant Tesla, Inc. (“Tesla”) under the name of his spouse, Plaintiff Jing Wang. Plaintiffs brought this action for breach of express and implied warranties, failure to warn, deceptive and misleading business practices and false advertising, common law fraud, and negligent misrepresentation against Tesla. (Am. Compl. (Dkt. 18).) Before the court is Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs’ fraud claim and Plaintiffs’ prayer for punitive and exemplary damages pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), and Defendant’s Motion to Strike several paragraphs of the Amended Complaint pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(f). (Tesla Mot. to Dismiss (“Tesla Mot.”) (Dkt. 24-1); Pls.’ Mem. in Opp. to Def.’s Mot. to Dismiss (“Opp.”) (Dkt. 24-3); Tesla Reply to Opp. (“Tesla Reply to Opp.”) (Dkt. 24-4).) For the reasons set forth herein, Defendant’s Motion for Partial Dismissal and Motion to Strike is granted in part and denied in part. The court grants dismissal of Plaintiffs’ fraud claim, but denies Defendant’s motion to dismiss Plaintiffs’ prayer for punitive and exemplary damages and Defendant’s motion to strike portions of Plaintiffs’ Amended Complaint. I. BACKGROUND In or around 2015, Plaintiff Chan became interested in purchasing a Tesla vehicle for his daily commutes through Long Island traffic. (Am. Compl.

23-24.) He was especially intrigued by Tesla’s Autopilot feature, which, according to Tesla, is designed to help drivers navigate “the burdensome parts of driving.” (Id.

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