NHTSA Complaint #11591608 — 2021 TESLA MODEL Y

I was trapped in my car when the 12V starter battery died without warning and everything in the car shut down. I was very fortunate that I had my cell phone with me to call my friend who had just left. However, he was unable to help me open the car from the outside. I spent several minutes going through several questions in an attempt to make an emergency request for roadside assistance on the Tesla app in hopes they could talk me through getting out. I finally received a text stating my request was 'being reviewed'! I have claustrophobia so by now I'm not breathing comfortably. I responded that I was trapped in my car and needed immediate help. They responded telling me where an emergency release was. A release which every Tesla owner that I know has told me they had NO knowledge of. When I was towed to Tesla, the service adviser told me ' claustrophobic' people probably shouldn't buy a Tesla! Well... he was partially correct...only I would go further to say 'nobody' should be a Tesla... it is a death trap. What if I had put my 3 year old grandchild in her car seat and shut the door to get in the driver side? She would not be able to pull an emergency lever! I was sitting on a fully charged Lithium-Ion battery yet I was unable to open a door...so how about a safety bypass to this battery ?? Seems to me the default with a dead battery should be that the doors unlock...not lock! This is certainly NOT a 'smart' car....it is a potential death trap for which there are countless other reports in the news, yet Tesla and your organization has yet to take action.