A 20-year-old college student faces a life forever changed following a devastating accident involving his Tesla, which erupted into flames, as alleged in a lawsuit against the electric car manufacturer.
Jay Kharbanda, a biochemistry student at Stony Brook University, claims that a flawed battery design in his 2024 Tesla Model 3 transformed the vehicle into a blazing inferno after it collided with a utility pole on Long Island.
The incident occurred on June 30, 2025, as Kharbanda was en route to his home. He reports that another car cut in front of him in Dix Hills, approximately 40 miles from Manhattan.
According to the lawsuit filed in federal court in Brooklyn, the impact propelled Kharbanda’s Tesla into the utility pole at the intersection of Old Country Road and Newtown Road in Plainview.
“I blacked out,” Kharbanda recounted to the New York Post. “I just remember getting hit, and that’s it.”
The lawsuit alleges the impact caused the car’s high-voltage lithium-ion battery to fail ‘catastrophically,’ triggering a phenomenon known as thermal runaway, in which overheating battery cells ignite one another in a rapidly escalating chain reaction.
Kharbanda’s lawyer, Scott Epstein, told the Post that the vehicle became ‘a literal hell on earth.’
Video of the crash shows flames shooting from the red Tesla as Kharbanda lay injured on the ground nearby.
Kharbanda suffered third- and fourth-degree burns, underwent four surgeries and had several toes on his left foot amputated after the June 30 crash in Plainview, New York
The lawsuit alleges a catastrophic battery failure triggered a ‘thermal runaway’ fire that left the aspiring doctor with more than $800,000 in medical bills
Kharbanda said he does not know how he escaped the burning car. He was later told that the doors malfunctioned and bystanders smashed a window to pull him to safety.Â
He woke up at Nassau University Medical Center, where he spent two months undergoing painful treatment.
The former high school sprinter suffered third- and fourth-degree burns to his lower legs, severe burns to his face and left hand, torn knee ligaments, and the amputation of several toes on his left foot.
He underwent four surgeries, multiple skin grafts, and weeks of daily hyperbaric oxygen treatments.
‘I was coughing up and sneezing black soot for two or three weeks,’ Kharbanda told the Post.
Kharbanda, who hopes to pursue a career in medicine, said the ordeal has left him too traumatized to drive.
‘I think Tesla should realize that their cars aren’t as safe as they make them out to be,’ he said.
His father, Gagan Kharbanda, said the family expects to face at least $800,000 in medical bills.
‘I lost my whole world when I saw him,’ he told the Post.
The June 30 crash in Plainview sent Kharbanda’s Tesla into a utility pole before the vehicle erupted in flames, according to the lawsuit
The aspiring doctor says he no longer drives and now relies on Uber or rides from his parents after the traumatic crash
Jay Kharbanda, 20, a Stony Brook University biochemistry student, is suing Tesla after his 2024 Model 3 burst into flames following a crash on Long Island
Kharbanda is seeking unspecified damages, including punitive damages intended to hold Tesla accountable.
Tesla did not respond to the New York Post’s request for comment.
Kharbanda said he now relies on Uber or rides from his parents.
‘I don’t think it’s worth it,’ he said.
The Daily Mail has gone to Tesla for comment.Â