A Tesla Model 3 has hit a parked police car in Orlando, and the driver said she was 'in Autopilot'

August 31, 2021: -The driver of a 2019 Tesla Model 3 told officers she used an Autopilot, Tesla’s advanced driver assistance system, when she collided with a police car and a Mercedes SUV on Saturday in Orlando, Florida.

There were no injuries or fatalities reported after the incident.

An investigation regarding the cause of the crash has not yet been completed. It remains to be determined if Tesla’s Autopilot caused or contributed to the incident.

According to a statement from the Florida Highway Patrol, at the time of the incident, a trooper had stopped to assist a driver, the 2012 Mercedes GLK 350, which was disabled at the side of the Interstate 4 highway in Orlando. The soldier had already stepped out of his parked police vehicle, a 2018 Dodge Charger, by the time the Tesla Model 3 was running into it.

The front right of the Tesla hit the left side of the police car and then the Mercedes SUV.

According to emails to CNBC on Saturday, police notify Tesla and the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration about the incident.

The crash comes from federal scrutiny of Tesla’s advanced driver assistance systems.

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration opened an investigation into the Autopilot feature of Tesla after determining that the system had been in use in a string of Tesla collisions with first responder vehicles that caused 17 injuries and a fatality over the past few years, CNBC reported.

After revealing the investigation, two Democratic senators, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Ed Markey of Massachusetts, asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the claims around its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving capabilities of Tesla.

Tesla includes Autopilot as a standard offering in all its newer vehicles. The company is selling a premium driver assistance system under the moniker Full Self-Driving. FSD costs $10,000 upfront or $199 each month for subscribers in the U.S.

Both Autopilot and FSD require drivers to remain attentive behind the wheel at all times. They do not make Tesla vehicles autonomous.