By Jarrett Renshaw, Rachael Levy and Chris Kirkham

(Reuters) – The Trump transition team seeks to eliminate a vehicle crash reporting requirement that affects Tesla. This change could hinder government oversight of automated-driving safety.

Elon Musk, noted as the world’s richest person, invested over $250 million to support Trump’s election. Dropping the crash-disclosure rule would benefit Tesla, which has reported over 1,500 crashes to federal regulators. Tesla has faced scrutiny from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) due to data from these incidents.

The Trump transition team’s recommendation to scrap the rule was part of a 100-day automotive strategy, labeling it as excessive data collection. The team, Musk, and Tesla have not commented on this matter.

A Reuters review revealed Tesla was involved in 40 out of 45 fatal crashes examined by the NHTSA as of October 15. Among notable incidents are a 2023 Virginia accident involving a Tesla on ‘Autopilot’ and a California collision with a firetruck, leading to fatalities and injuries.

The NHTSA clarified that such data is vital for assessing emerging automated-driving technology safety. Previous employee insights suggested that these crash-reporting mandates are crucial for identifying crash patterns and prompting investigations, which resulted in recalls. The NHTSA has processed data on over 2,700 crashes since establishing the rule in 2021, leading to ten investigations and nine recalls.

NHTSA's regulation mandates crash reporting when advanced driver-assistance or autonomous technologies were active within 30 seconds before impact. Additionally, the transition team proposed to overhaul regulations surrounding autonomous vehicles and establish basic development guidelines.

In prior Tesla earnings calls, Musk advocated for a streamlined federal approval process for autonomous vehicles. Following Trump’s election, Musk was appointed to co-lead a new Department of Government Efficiency focused on reducing regulations.

Tesla is a key player in the advanced driver-assistance domain. Nevertheless, its Autopilot and “Full Self-Driving” systems are under scrutiny for potentially misleading claims regarding their capabilities.

Tesla opposes the crash-reporting requirement, arguing that it presents data in a misleading manner. Internal discussions indicated that Tesla executives recognized the need for changes amid administrative shifts, believing the reporting regime unfairly portrayed their safety record.

Experts caution against comparing safety data between companies, as different reporting practices exist. University of South Carolina law professor Bryant Walker Smith highlighted that Tesla collects crash data in real time, likely reporting a higher frequency of incidents than competitors due to its volume of equipped vehicles and active usage.