Tesla Crash Case: Why Wasn't Tesla Sued?
That's the question I'm asked most often about the case filed by the family of the passenger lost in the Tesla plane crash.
The reason T
esla wasn't sued is simple. Neither a passenger nor his family is allowed to sue an employer for a work-related injury or death. Instead, they are stuck with the meager workers' compensation benefits available to them. Even if the death was caused by the employer's negligence, the family can't bring the employer into court.
But as I told the New York Times when they called today, it gets worse. The family isn't allowed to sue the co-employee either. Or, for that matter, the co-employee's estate.
There are very few exceptions to the workers' compensation rule prohibiting an injured employee from suing a co-employee. I've discussed those before here. None of the exceptions seem to apply in this case. Pilot error or not (and that's debatable at this point), you can bet that the pilot's estate will be asking very early on to have the case against it thrown out.
Hadn't flown in 18 months, and departs into sketchy weather with passengers on board? Wow.
Perhaps plaintiffs will argue that the pilot was outside the course and scope of his employment. I don't know diddly about worker's comp. What if two employees of the same company are on a business trip, and go out to dinner in the rental car, and the driver crashes, injuring the passenger. Would worker's comp bar a lawsuit there?
Regards,
CS
The stuff about the pilot not having flown for 18 months doesn't seem right. Flightaware indicates the aircraft flew on an instrument flight plan just a couple of weeks before the accident=> http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N5225J
Could have been a different pilot, but unlikely.
As far as your hypo about the business trip, the answer is yes, worker's comp law would prevent the passenger from suing either the driver or the employer.
Mike