Image Credit: WISN via YouTubeFollowing more than a dozen deaths related to individuals who were unable to open doors following Tesla crashes and subsequent fires, federal auto safety regulators have begun a process to develop requirements for easier-to-open car doors for egress. At the same time, a petitioner's request regarding a safety defect investigation was denied.As reported by The Orange County Register (TOCR), citing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the announcement took place on Thursday, July 23. The federal agency detailed that it had begun a process for a federal law imposition regarding vehicle doors.According to a regulatory filing, this takes place after granting a petitioner's request, which demanded that the agency "mandate a robust and obvious door egress system in all motor vehicles." Should this process come to fruition, all new U.S. vehicles would be required to follow the resulting federal law.AdvertisementAdvertisementWhat prompted the petitioner's request? A series of fatal incidents involving Tesla Inc. and other manufacturers and trapped inside the cars after loss of power.15 DeathsSpecifically, the petitioner's request cited vehicles equipped with flush, electrically operated door handles, TOCR said. Reports suggest that, following crashes and subsequent loss of power, doors are unable to be opened from the inside.As a result, many drivers and occupants succumbed inside their vehicles, trapped without escape. Some of them even managed to survive the initial crashes but were burned alive while inside their cars as a result of the flames.In a December 2025 report, Bloomberg News shared that, in the past decade, 15 people have perished this way inside Tesla vehicles. In total, these deaths occurred in a dozen incidents, one of which occurred in Wisconsin.Wisconsin Tesla TragedyAs reported by WISN, the incident happened in Verona back in November 2024. A red Tesla Model S crashed as a result of road conditions, excess speed, and impaired driving, the Dane County Sheriff's Office announced at the time.AdvertisementAdvertisementA 911 caller told the dispatcher that the vehicle had caught fire shortly after crashing. The caller could hear people screaming from inside the Tesla.Five minutes into the call, the caller could still hear the occupants screaming. In total, five lost their lives as a result of the flames, which only left charred remains behind. The children of the victims, Jeffrey and Michelle Bauer, sued Tesla one year later.Loss of power was to blame, as the door handles were electronically activated. Attorney Andrew McDevitt, who represents the Bauer siblings, explained, "There's a backup release that you need to find that's hidden under a carpet flap that's unmarked. I would think most people would never figure that out."Years to ComeThe process for the new federal law could take years to be finalized. Car industry pushback is a contributing factor, as these manufacturing requirements translate to elevated costs.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdditionally, the regulatory filing also detailed that a separate petitioner's request was denied. As reported by Reuters, this request addressed a potential life-threatening defect, directly mentioning close to 180,000 2022 Tesla Model 3 vehicles with hard-to-locate manual door releases.The NHTSA argued that existing federal safety rules involving door locks and handles do not address emergency mechanical door release location or labeling. Instead, the agency argued that the started rulemaking process would properly address the issue rather than a defect investigation.If you want more stories like this, follow Guessing Headlights on Yahoo so you don't miss what's coming next.