Aggressive Bill Collection

[irwinjr]

Had my first mobile service on June 22nd, servicing a smelly A/C system (vehicle is 7 months old...) and diagnose a substantial rattle. After the tech completed the AC repair (needed to schedule follow up to replace entire skirt for rattle fix) I asked about payment, she stated I'd receive instructions via the app along with final amount. Sure enough a few minutes after she left I had a message!

The bill was $133.66 and stated "Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please respond and I can assist you." Seemed simple enough.

Only I couldn't find anywhere in the app or online to pay the bill. I'm pretty tech savy (32 yr old and two engineering degrees) and have even figured out our local county revenue department's 3rd party payment service, which should have been enough to finish a disseration. But for the life of me I did not see anywhere to pay the bill. No link in the message, no webpage, so I decided I'd worry about it later. Also... I'm going into the service center on July 7th to get the skirt replaced, which is when I planned to pay - a full 14 days past service.

Flash forward to today (June 29th) and I have not yet paid. I've received near daily messages repeating the same worthless message and today they stepped it up a notch: "Hi Jacob, this is Logan with Tesla Mobile Service, again. Your prior service visit has an unpaid balance of $133.66 USD, that needs to be paid. Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If the balance remains unpaid the account will be sent to our collections team for further action. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please responde and I can assist you." COLLECTIONS?! 7 DAYS AFTER FIRST CONTACT?! Holy Cow that's aggressive.

Now I know you're wondering - yes I replied to Logan's latest message and after spending too much time looking around the app I did find where to pay. But I am blown away that a company based primarily on brand success would be such d!#ks to their customers. I know they are a new-age company but that doesn't mean they get to re-write the rules of being decent nor laws related to collections (typically a phrase meaning it'll be reported to credit services).

Anyone else experience anything similar? Or was Logan just out over his skiis at the St. Louis Tesla Service Center?

 

[MP3Mike]

Flash forward to today (June 29th) and I have not yet paid. I've received near daily messages repeating the same worthless message and today they stepped it up a notch: "Hi Jacob, this is Logan with Tesla Mobile Service, again. Your prior service visit has an unpaid balance of $133.66 USD, that needs to be paid. Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If the balance remains unpaid the account will be sent to our collections team for further action. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please responde and I can assist you." COLLECTIONS?! 7 DAYS AFTER FIRST CONTACT?! Holy Cow that's aggressive.

It seems you are jumping to conclusions there... They didn't say when it would get to collections, only that it eventually would if it remained unpaid...

 

[brkaus]

People tend to either pay early or pay very late (or never). Technology is trying to get more people in the pay early category. This is especially true as more things become “bill sent in the app” instead of handing over a credit card at the time of service.

Collecting payments has been the hardest thing about our business going video/online. Lots of people say they are just going to cover it next time. And it doesn’t happen.

 

[STE$LAR]

Had my first mobile service on June 22nd, servicing a smelly A/C system (vehicle is 7 months old...) and diagnose a substantial rattle. After the tech completed the AC repair (needed to schedule follow up to replace entire skirt for rattle fix) I asked about payment, she stated I'd receive instructions via the app along with final amount. Sure enough a few minutes after she left I had a message!

The bill was $133.66 and stated "Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please respond and I can assist you." Seemed simple enough.

Only I couldn't find anywhere in the app or online to pay the bill. I'm pretty tech savy (32 yr old and two engineering degrees) and have even figured out our local county revenue department's 3rd party payment service, which should have been enough to finish a disseration. But for the life of me I did not see anywhere to pay the bill. No link in the message, no webpage, so I decided I'd worry about it later. Also... I'm going into the service center on July 7th to get the skirt replaced, which is when I planned to pay - a full 14 days past service.

Flash forward to today (June 29th) and I have not yet paid. I've received near daily messages repeating the same worthless message and today they stepped it up a notch: "Hi Jacob, this is Logan with Tesla Mobile Service, again. Your prior service visit has an unpaid balance of $133.66 USD, that needs to be paid. Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If the balance remains unpaid the account will be sent to our collections team for further action. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please responde and I can assist you." COLLECTIONS?! 7 DAYS AFTER FIRST CONTACT?! Holy Cow that's aggressive.

Now I know you're wondering - yes I replied to Logan's latest message and after spending too much time looking around the app I did find where to pay. But I am blown away that a company based primarily on brand success would be such d!#ks to their customers. I know they are a new-age company but that doesn't mean they get to re-write the rules of being decent nor laws related to collectionssh (typically a phrase meaning it'll be reported to credit services).

Anyone else experience anything similar? Or was Logan just out over his skiis at the St. Louis Tesla Service Center?

The owner of Tesla net worth is only $180,000,000,000.00 yes that's 180 billion they desperately need your $133.00. I dont have a cc on file or one at all for that matter try paying the good ol fashin way in cash and see what they say...I already know they don't accept cash only can pay by bank card through the app. so what if you don't have a phone and/or a bank card? have cash will they still take it to collection's? Maybe I'll find out. they are playing games, controlling users to use the app and make them go to their own SC no private mechanics....they cant get away with this much longer.

 

[tccartier]

Had my first mobile service on June 22nd, servicing a smelly A/C system (vehicle is 7 months old...) and diagnose a substantial rattle. After the tech completed the AC repair (needed to schedule follow up to replace entire skirt for rattle fix) I asked about payment, she stated I'd receive instructions via the app along with final amount. Sure enough a few minutes after she left I had a message!

The bill was $133.66 and stated "Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please respond and I can assist you." Seemed simple enough.

Only I couldn't find anywhere in the app or online to pay the bill. I'm pretty tech savy (32 yr old and two engineering degrees) and have even figured out our local county revenue department's 3rd party payment service, which should have been enough to finish a disseration. But for the life of me I did not see anywhere to pay the bill. No link in the message, no webpage, so I decided I'd worry about it later. Also... I'm going into the service center on July 7th to get the skirt replaced, which is when I planned to pay - a full 14 days past service.

Flash forward to today (June 29th) and I have not yet paid. I've received near daily messages repeating the same worthless message and today they stepped it up a notch: "Hi Jacob, this is Logan with Tesla Mobile Service, again. Your prior service visit has an unpaid balance of $133.66 USD, that needs to be paid. Please log into your myTesla account to add a payment option and pay your unpaid balance in your Tesla app. If the balance remains unpaid the account will be sent to our collections team for further action. If you are having trouble paying your unpaid balance please responde and I can assist you." COLLECTIONS?! 7 DAYS AFTER FIRST CONTACT?! Holy Cow that's aggressive.

Now I know you're wondering - yes I replied to Logan's latest message and after spending too much time looking around the app I did find where to pay. But I am blown away that a company based primarily on brand success would be such d!#ks to their customers. I know they are a new-age company but that doesn't mean they get to re-write the rules of being decent nor laws related to collections (typically a phrase meaning it'll be reported to credit services).

Anyone else experience anything similar? Or was Logan just out over his skiis at the St. Louis Tesla Service Center?

You didn't already have a credit card on file in your Tesla account? I added a payment method long time ago when I first opened my account it's a credit card it remains on file with them. That solves all the issues you were talking about. Pretty seamless process but you're right I don't think there is a way to pay without adding a payment option to your account which is what by your words they were asking you to do seems like you were interpreting that as if they wanted you to pay them which they did of course but they needed to have a payment option added to your account so they could charge that for the amount of the bill.

 

[tccartier]

The owner of Tesla net worth is only $180,000,000,000.00 yes that's 180 billion they desperately need your $133.00. I dont have a cc on file or one at all for that matter try paying the good ol fashin way in cash and see what they say...I already know they don't accept cash only can pay by bank card through the app. so what if you don't have a phone and/or a bank card? have cash will they still take it to collection's? Maybe I'll find out. they are playing games, controlling users to use the app and make them go to their own SC no private mechanics....they cant get away with this much longer

The owner of Tesla net worth is only $180,000,000,000.00 yes that's 180 billion they desperately need your $133.00. I dont have a cc on file or one at all for that matter try paying the good ol fashin way in cash and see what they say...I already know they don't accept cash only can pay by bank card through the app. so what if you don't have a phone and/or a bank card? have cash will they still take it to collection's? Maybe I'll find out. they are playing games, controlling users to use the app and make them go to their own SC no private mechanics....they cant get away with this much longer.

Yes but the poor Tesla employees and everyone that works for the company isn't worth that much money so I guess he needs that to be able to pay their wages and benefits ;-)