ELON MUSK: 'Fraudulent' safety complaints are being filed against Tesla
The claim stems from a complaint about a single Model S vehicle that reportedly had suspension trouble.
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) got involved Thursday, saying it was "examining the potential suspension issue on the Tesla Model S, and is seeking additional information from vehicle owners and the company."
The government agency is responsible for regulating vehicle safety. It later found that there was no issue concerning the Model S suspension parts.
Musk affirmed that finding in a tweet on Friday, saying "NHTSA confirmed today that they found no safety concern with the Model S suspension and have no further need for data from us on this matter."
The CEO later tweeted his concerns about the veracity of the complaints. Musk said "of greater concern: 37 of 40 suspension complaints to NHTSA were fraudulent, i.e. false location or vehicle identification numbers were used."
Musk went further, suggesting that the complaints were submitted in order to "create the false impression of a safety issue where none existed. [Question] is why?"
Earlier this week, Tesla was accused of routinely asking its customers to sign repair non-disclosure agreements, allegedly preventing them from speaking publicly about repairs made to their cars.
Tesla has said that it does not ask its customers to sign non-disclosure agreements.
The document - which Tesla calls a "Goodwill Agreement" - does not prevent customers from reporting issues with their cars to the government.
"The company said it often agrees to cover or discount repairs even if Tesla is not responsible and requires customers to sign a "goodwill agreement" that requires nondisclosure of the incident," Reuters reported Friday.
In an emailed statement to Business Insider, Tesla spokeswoman Alexis Georgeson said the company's Goodwill Agreement "is to benefit customers, while not harming us for doing a good deed."