Tesla recalls 817,000 vehicles over seatbelt warning issue

Tesla has already started rolling out a software update to address the issue in production vehicles, according to a document filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Other Tesla vehicles will receive an over-the-air software update early this month.

Tesla’s recalls that surfaced last week are not binding on vehicle owners or the company. Drivers do not need to schedule a service appointment. Both are fixed by software updates, reducing the severity and cost of a recall. (Earlier this week, Tesla recalled its “fully autonomous” software, which had been programmed to drive through stop signs.)

This seatbelt chime did not sound on some Teslas due to a software bug, according to the document filed by the automaker.

The bug occurred after a driver exited the vehicle when the chime was sounding, then re-entered the vehicle. The issue wouldn’t occur if the vehicle was going over 13.7 mph, according to Tesla. The automaker’s visual alert of an unbuckled seatbelt was also unaltered by the flaw, according to the document.

The South Korea Automobile Testing & Research Institute notified Tesla of the issue on January 6 this year. Tesla concluded on January 25 that there was indeed a problem. There have been no accidents, injuries or fatalities as a result of the bug as of January 31, according to the document filed by Tesla. The automaker did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business.

Tesla has received heightened scrutiny from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration over the past year.

The administration said yesterday it was considering an investigation into complaints that Teslas sometimes brake unnecessarily.