France Blocks Tesla FSD Over Safety Concerns Including Speeding and Driver Inattention

The French government has decided not to approve Tesla's Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system for use in the country at this time, citing multiple safety concerns with the current version that make it unsuitable for public roads. French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot stated that the system’s safety trade-offs are insufficient to justify approval and emphasized that FSD is not an autonomous driving system. Regulators highlighted two primary issues: First, FSD adjusts its speed based on surrounding traffic flow, which could lead to speeding—for example, driving at 70 km/h on roads with a 50 km/h speed limit. Second, in complex urban driving scenarios—such as navigating roundabouts or changing lanes—the system fails to ensure drivers maintain adequate attention. Notably, Tesla’s recent FSD update has actually relaxed driver monitoring requirements and reduced alert frequency. Previously, Sweden also called on the European Union to deny FSD approval over similar concerns, particularly focusing on the “Speed Offset” feature that allows vehicles to exceed legal speed limits. Currently, only five European countries—Netherlands, Estonia, Lithuania, Denmark, and Belgium—have approved FSD, with no new countries joining in the past month. France stressed it has not permanently closed the door to approval and is engaging in technical discussions with Dutch regulators, other EU member states, and Tesla, aiming to resolve the issues through data analysis and software adjustments. Tesla may remove the Speed Offset feature from its European FSD version and enhance driver monitoring mechanisms. The European Commission plans to hold a vote in October 2024 on whether to grant EU-wide approval for FSD, and Tesla must address national safety concerns before then to secure support.