Tesla posts unredacted Robotaxi crash reports

Tesla has updated federal crash filings to disclose narrative descriptions for previously redacted Robotaxi incidents in Austin, giving the public a fuller look at how its test fleet has been operating on public roads. The newly visible reports, first highlighted Monday by Not a Tesla App, cover 19 incidents involving Tesla’s Austin Robotaxi test fleet and were posted through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Standing General Order reporting system. NHTSA’s crash-reporting order requires named manufacturers and operators to report certain crashes involving vehicles equipped with Automated Driving Systems. Until this week, Tesla’s public summaries had largely used the same boilerplate redaction language in place of incident descriptions, according to the newly updated filings and reporting based on them. ### What exactly changed in Tesla’s filings? May 18 is the date on Not a Tesla App’s report saying Tesla revised historical NHTSA submissions to show full narratives for Austin incidents that had previously been masked as confidential business information. (notateslaapp.com) The update did not create a new reporting regime; it changed what the public could read in reports already filed under the federal order. NHTSA says its Standing General Order is meant to provide timely and transparent notice of crashes involving ADS and certain Level 2 systems. (notateslaapp.com) For ADS, the order applies when the system was in use within 30 seconds of a crash and the event led to specified property damage or injury. ### What do the newly visible incident descriptions show? Austin, Texas, is the location for the 19 incidents described in the updated set highlighted by Not a Tesla App. (notateslaapp.com) That report said many of the narratives describe low-speed contacts, including cases in which manually driven vehicles struck stopped Teslas from behind or clipped them in traffic. One of the incidents described by Not a Tesla App involved a newly mass-produced Cybercab that was rear-ended by another vehicle while being tested on public roads. (nhtsa.gov) The article also said the broader set includes events such as a pedicab clipping a stopped Tesla’s mirror and a motor scooter contacting a Tesla’s rear bumper. ### Where do remote operators show up in the reports? TechCrunch reported on May 15 that two of Tesla’s newly unredacted Austin crash reports involved teleoperators remotely driving the vehicles at low speed. (notateslaapp.com) In one July 2025 incident, a safety monitor requested help after the vehicle had trouble moving forward, and the teleoperator then drove into a curb and metal fence, according to the NHTSA-submitted narrative quoted by the publication. A second incident in January 2026 involved a teleoperator taking over when the vehicle was stopped and then contacting a temporary construction barricade at about 9 mph, TechCrunch reported. The report said both crashes happened in Austin, there was a safety monitor in the vehicle, and no passengers were onboard. ### Does this mean Tesla has been using remote assistance during Robotaxi testing? The Austin American-Statesman reported that Tesla’s local crash reports now include narratives showing the company has used remote operators in rare circumstances since launching publicly branded Robotaxi service in Austin nearly a year ago. (techcrunch.com) TechCrunch separately reported that Tesla previously told lawmakers remote operators could pilot a vehicle at speeds under 10 mph to move it from a compromised position. Wired also reported that the newly disclosed material showed remote operators had, in limited cases, driven Tesla autonomous vehicles into a metal fence and a construction barricade. That added a human-operations detail that had not been visible in Tesla’s earlier redacted public summaries. ### Where can readers find the reports now? NHTSA maintains the Standing General Order crash-reporting database on its website and says the order has been amended several times since first being issued in 2021. (statesman.com) Tesla’s updated Austin Robotaxi narratives are part of that system, and Not a Tesla App published its account of the unredacted reports on May 18. Tesla’s Robotaxi reporting will continue to be visible through the NHTSA database as additional ADS incidents are filed. (wired.com) Austin remains the center of the company’s publicly branded Robotaxi testing covered by the newly unredacted reports. (notateslaapp.com) (nhtsa.gov)