Tesla blames Model X crash on driver, family could take legal action

California - The family of the driver of a Tesla Model X, who died due to injuries sustained in a crash, on a California highway in March has hired the services of a law firm to "explore legal options",Reuters reports.

Minami Tamaki LLP will represent the family after the Walter Huang's Model X hit the median barrier on highway 101, in the Bay Area, and was struck by two other vehicles cars.

The vehicle burst into flames. Police report that although the driver was rushed to hospital but succumbed to his injuries. 

The car's autopilot system was engaged at the time of the crash, however the family says that the same autopilot feature in the car probably caused his death according to Reuters. 

On March 30, the automaker has released an update:

Tesla said: "Since posting our first update, we have been working as quickly as possible to establish the facts of last week’s accident. Our hearts are with the family and friends who have been affected by this tragedy.

"The safety of our customers is our top priority, which is why we are working closely with investigators to understand what happened, and what we can do to prevent this from happening in the future. After the logs from the computer inside the vehicle were recovered, we have more information about what may have happened."

Read the original Reuters story here. 

What happened?

Tesla said: "In the moments before the collision, which occurred at 9:27am on March 23rd, Autopilot was engaged with the adaptive cruise control follow-distance set to minimum. The driver had received several visual and one audible hands-on warning earlier in the drive and the driver’s hands were not detected on the wheel for six seconds prior to the collision. The driver had about five seconds and 150 meters of unobstructed view of the concrete divider with the crushed crash attenuator but the vehicle logs show that no action was taken."