Burned by Tesla on idle fees. Something to know

[cpa]

I believe Supercharging notifications are always ON.

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Yeah, Bonnie, I have seen that on my screen.

At K-Falls in May and at Twentynine Palms in August, I had set the slider to 95% and went for a walk. I knew about how long it would take to fill the battery to my desired level. I never received the 80% notification alert. I would check the phone periodically to monitor my progress, and I timed my return to arrive at around 90%. (I do not recall whether I received the "charging completed" notice.) I was in no danger of idle fees as both spots were deserted except for me.

There are times when I cannot connect my phone to my car. The circle of doom keeps spinning and spinning and spinning. . .

Twice this year the phone has dropped my password. Then I have to go searching through my password list before I can reestablish connection. The blue tooth connection crapped out on me in Springfield, OR in May and in Cabazon last December.

These events lead me to believe that the entire phone application/connection/notification procedure has intermittent issues that are not addressed. We do not have the best possible software and connections. Neither do we have the best software and connections possible. Good enough seems to be the standard. If Tesla feels that it is necessary to assess idle fees (and I agree), then good enough is woefully inadequate.

So, for me this boils down to the old adage about fooling me once. I do not trust Tesla's notification mechanisms or procedures.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

Tesla should have charged you much more.

 

[wangjue]

The ultimate solution will be with FSD, car unplug and drive away find a valid parking spot by themselves.

 

[thecloud]

Twice this year the phone has dropped my password. Then I have to go searching through my password list before I can reestablish connection.

I've experienced that as well, but I think that part is expected behavior. When you enter your password in the app, your phone gets a token that lets the app subsequently log into Tesla's servers without the password. Periodically that token will need to be regenerated, either because the servers got updated or there's some expiration on the token for security purposes.

Of course, Murphy's Law says that this will always happen when you're on the road and really need to check your charging status.

 

[beths11]

Tesla instituted 40 cents per minute fees some time ago to alleviate congestion. People leaving cars there.

well, I travel from MI down south a lot. In the midwest there is rarely anyone at a supercharger. So I left my car plugged in overnight while I slept (save an hour of trip time). I did this knowing there is never anyone at the station.

Tesla sent me a bill. I'm like 'that's impossible' no way that station got full in the night. (i was only one there in the morning too)
So I read policy and Tesla changed it from SC station full to 50% full. I didn't know this. I have my doubts that it ever got 50% full but it's something to know if you plan on leaving it plugged in at a deserted station.

[Moderator note: Corrected "40 cents per hour" to "40 cents per minute".]

I believe the policy has always been 50% full. Leaving your car plugged in overnight when it would take you 40 minutes to charge, not cool.

 

[vdiv]

So perhaps instead of expensive Superchargers Tesla should install destination chargers at hotels where it is presumed patrons would stay overnight. Also if Tesla is really concerned about Supercharger availability they would have provisions with the Supercharger hosts to enforce that. Instead we get general parking, storage containers and long trailers occupying stalls, and something tells me none of them pay idle fees.

 

[jkennebeck]

FROM THE POLICY on the Tesla site:

Which cars can incur idle fees?
All Model S and Model X cars can incur idle fees.


So when the 350,000+ M3's his the roads, and I know they don't get FREE supercharging, but some will be using them, its gonna be an ever bigger problem. When is this policy going to be updated to include M3's???? Just because they pay by the kW they get a pass on idle fees? Is this an oversight?

I'd also like to see an update to the app that can, like google calendar/maps/traffic, give the owner a heads up when he should start walking/riding back to the SpC to move the car, based on the location of the phone versus the car. In drive time or walk time, selectable. I've parked at a charger and ridden with friends more than 10 min away. And they can use collected Idle fees to pay for the dev on that.

 

[RaeW]

Tesla instituted 40 cents per minute fees some time ago to alleviate congestion. People leaving cars there.

well, I travel from MI down south a lot. In the midwest there is rarely anyone at a supercharger. So I left my car plugged in overnight while I slept (save an hour of trip time). I did this knowing there is never anyone at the station.

Tesla sent me a bill. I'm like 'that's impossible' no way that station got full in the night. (i was only one there in the morning too)
So I read policy and Tesla changed it from SC station full to 50% full. I didn't know this. I have my doubts that it ever got 50% full but it's something to know if you plan on leaving it plugged in at a deserted station.

[Moderator note: Corrected "40 cents per hour" to "40 cents per minute".]

Tesla should call this a narcissist fee. Good for Tesla!

 

[ABC2D]

So perhaps instead of expensive Superchargers Tesla should install destination chargers at hotels where it is presumed patrons would stay overnight

You say this as it's up to Tesla to install the destination chargers. Hotels dont belong to Tesla, you know that, right, and it's hotel owners who ultimately decide what goes on on their property.

if Tesla is really concerned about Supercharger availability they would have provisions with the Supercharger hosts to enforce that.

You really think putting more burden on hosts is the way to go? Do you think hotels would welcome being told how to manage their property, parking, and customers? Assuming there were some provisions for charging - how would you enforce them? IF provisions not followed, would you remove the charging point?


::facepalm::

 

[RaeW]

Good to know. I guess now it's best to unplug and move just in case when overnight charging at a hotel supercharger even if it appears to be a low use area.

Certainly the considerate thing to do, but Tesla charges apply to Super
Chargers, not destination chargers.

 

[Qualiture]

Certainly the considerate thing to do, but Tesla charges apply to Super
Chargers, not destination chargers.

Where I come from, you should *always* move your car when full, whether it’s a Supercharger, Destination Charger or otherwise public charger.

That’s not considerate, it’s civilized

 

[SSonnentag]

FROM THE POLICY on the Tesla site:

Which cars can incur idle fees?
All Model S and Model X cars can incur idle fees.


So when the 350,000+ M3's his the roads, and I know they don't get FREE supercharging, but some will be using them, its gonna be an ever bigger problem. When is this policy going to be updated to include M3's???? Just because they pay by the kW they get a pass on idle fees? Is this an oversight?

I'd also like to see an update to the app that can, like google calendar/maps/traffic, give the owner a heads up when he should start walking/riding back to the SpC to move the car, based on the location of the phone versus the car. In drive time or walk time, selectable. I've parked at a charger and ridden with friends more than 10 min away. And they can use collected Idle fees to pay for the dev on that.

Where is it stated that idle fees only apply to vehicles with free supercharging? The statement from Tesla's site above simply hasn't been updated to include the Model 3 yet, probably because they aren't generally available yet.

 

[BEEZR]

I can imagine pulling in late to a SC near a hotel and just wanting to get to sleep. Perhaps an 8-stall SC with no one else there. Waiting an hour or so for the car to charge, then moving it, then getting back to my room -- maybe 90 minutes of sleep missed. In some cases I can see wanting to just park and go to bed. At that point I might do the math and determine my worst case cost for that extra sleep... Say 5 hours idle x 60 minutes x $0.40... $120. Not to be an ass but if you know the SC is not going to be busy from midnight to 6am, what's the harm? IN some locations it's just going to be near impossible for more than even 1-2 cars to be there at the same time in the wee hours.

If I did get a bill from Tesla I would ask them for the data on the charging usage during the time I was parked. And I would take a picture showing if anyone was there when I left my car. As has been said, the reporting from the SC is often inaccurate.

Finally, Tesla should look at adding a feature to the mobile app that lets you contact another driver who is parked at an SC and who has completed charging. I think it's the PlugShare app that has this kind of feature. I could be anonymous and based on license plate, only initiates when you plug in or when you're within short radius of the SC, with a notification through the app. Something like: There are # cars waiting to charge. Please move your vehicle when charging is complete."

 

[Joer293]

Inconsiderate, inconvenience, ignorance those behaviors don’t change by online protests. Setting people up for success is the only way to really fix it. Better engineering of the master plan.

I’m surprised no one mentioned that Tesla 2012 advertised and planned for a 17:1 vehicle sold to charger ratio as optimal. Today 2017, it stands at 34:1. Obvious deviation from calculated plan. It’s no surprise there is over crowding. The cost of chargers has dropped significantly and the SC buildout cost is baked into every S and X car sold since 2014. The budget has been redirected elsewhere. Tesla is on the hook for this ratio miss.

The 72kw augmentation plan is solid. Even cheaper and faster to deploy. hopefully this ramps up quick.

Home charging requires the second phase software engineering. Software enabled lower cost electricity tiers. Built in software metering, back end connections to the utility. Negotiations for lower kWh tier costs when charged based on utility rate schedule. Customer over rides allowed at normal rates. Demand payments/credits to customers for absorbing excess electricity on the grid. If you aren’t familiar with grid economics, Tesla’s JB has a few YouTube videos going into grid economic detail. The high utility charge tier cost is what drives bad behavior in some places like northern CA overcrowding.

 

[cybergates]

I got an idea for tesla....turn that charging fee into 50% store credit....good towards a new tesla or tesla merchandise.


Takes the sting of a fee away a bit yet reminds user not to do again and tesla sells merch.

I guess it would have to work something like this : 1) pay bill say 100 dollars 2) get voucher once paid for store credit 50$

 

[TexasEV]

I can imagine pulling in late to a SC near a hotel and just wanting to get to sleep. Perhaps an 8-stall SC with no one else there. Waiting an hour or so for the car to charge, then moving it, then getting back to my room -- maybe 90 minutes of sleep missed. In some cases I can see wanting to just park and go to bed. ."/

So charge in the morning while you're having breakfast. "Just wanting to get to sleep" doesn't mean it's ok to block a supercharger all night.

 

[BEEZR]

^^^ Good point. Better idea.

 

[Redmiata98]

It appears that the takeaway from these posts is that we should follow the rules. Is there a way that a vote count can be added to tally all of the responses so others do not have to read though 9 pages to get the same answer?

 

[mknox]

The clock starts ticking as soon as 50% is reached - and the charges continue until you disconnect, not when the 50% is reduced. So, it is very likely, while you were sleeping that the 50% was reached. Pay the fee and get over it... No sympathy here...

While I agree with the sentiment of unplugging and moving as soon as you are done, I have noticed on more than one occasion that my screen will report, for example, 4 of 8 stalls in use when I am the only car there. I wonder if the site really did reach 50% overnight, or was there some sort of glitch like I have been seeing in the car counter.

 

[JohnSnowNW]

While I agree with the sentiment of unplugging and moving as soon as you are done, I have noticed on more than one occasion that my screen will report, for example, 4 of 8 stalls in use when I am the only car there. I wonder if the site really did reach 50% overnight, or was there some sort of glitch like I have been seeing in the car counter.

This has been mentioned a couple times. My question is, are the map notifications simply lagging behind? It could certainly be possible that Tesla knows exactly when people are plugging and unplugging, but there is a delay of this information on the maps screen.