— Another Tesla door handle lawsuit has been filed, this time by a California driver of a 2025 Tesla Model Y.
In addition to Tesla, the door handle lawsuit blames numerous unnamed defendants such as "agents, servants, workmen, and/or employees [who] are strictly liable under California law."
The Tesla Model Y crash occurred at about 11:30 a.m. September 26, 2025. Plaintiff Wondafrash Gebreyes Gebremedihen was driving the 2025 Model Y north on the I-405 San Diego Freeway east of Inglewood Avenue in the city of Lawndale.
The Tesla lawsuit says the plaintiff was alone and driving for transportation company Uber when the crash occurred.
The door handle lawsuit references the California Highway Patrol report that says the Model Y was traveling at a high rate of speed when it suddenly flew through lane one of the Inglewood Avenue exit and hit a freeway entrance sign in the concrete median.
The vehicle then crossed the intersection of the freeway exit and Inglewood Avenue to the left of traffic proceeding in lane one, also at a high rate of speed, then crashed into another sign and then a concrete wall. The Tesla burst into flames and the plaintiff complains he was trapped.
According to the Tesla lawsuit:
"After the collision, good Samaritans attempted to render aid to Plaintiff, but the driver-side door of the subject Tesla Model Y could not be opened from the outside of the vehicle, trapping Plaintiff inside the burning vehicle. Another passerby was eventually able to smash open the driver-side window, and good Samaritans were able to extricate Plaintiff from the vehicle just prior to when the fire completely engulfed the vehicle."
Plaintiff Gebremedihen claims he "suffered catastrophic, life-threatening injuries" caused by his Model Y that allegedly had "no exterior door handles." He complains the "only way to open its doors from the outside is to engage buttons connected to an electrical system, relying entirely on low-voltage power."
Court documents assert the exterior buttons are useless if power is lost in a crash or fire, and an interior manual door release on the door interior must be used to open the door. But the lawsuit claims that is impossible if the occupant is incapacitated from the crash or fire.
The plaintiff further complains Tesla didn't warn him the Model Y "was not in a reasonably safe condition" and the risk of driving the Model Y outweighed any benefit.
The 2025 Tesla Model Y earned a 5-star safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and earned a 2025 Top Safety Pick+ award from the Insurance Institute For Highway Safety.
The Tesla door handle lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California: Wondafrash Gebreyes Gebremedihen v. Tesla, Inc., et al.
The plaintiff is represented by the Law Office of Jonathan B. Ambaye.
