Walmart sues Tesla for negligence after solar system fires

Walmart sued Tesla on Tuesday for “widespread negligence” that led to repeated fires linked to the company's solar systems and has asked a court to force the technology giant to remove the panels from over 240 of its US stores.

The court papers filed in the New York State Supreme Court alleged that fires at seven Walmart stores were directly provoked by solar energy systems, installed by Tesla, that suffered from multiple potential fire hazards, including loose wiring and hot spots.

The fires destroyed a significant amount of merchandise and required costly repairs leading to millions of dollars in losses.

In the lawsuit, Walmart also accused Tesla of employing untrained workers, which resulted in shoddy installations, reflecting its “utter incompetence or callousness, or both,” court papers said.

The retailer also pointed to other installations at Walmart stores that “displayed troubling problems that were indicative of widespread negligence”.

According to the lawsuit, in July, Walmart gave Tesla 30 days to provide analyses of the root causes of the fires, compensate the retailer for damages to its stores and demonstrate an overhaul of its operations but Tesla has “still not taken any reasonable steps toward curing its breaches.”

Tesla's legal tussle marked but the latest problem for Tesla’s already struggling solar business SolarCity, which it acquired in 2016 for $2.6bn.