Returning a Lease Car with Accident Damage

[Mike K]

Anyone ever had to do this before? My car was rear ended in May. The damage is limited to the bumper cover and the bumper reinforcement under that as well as the hatch needed to be blended and filled in one small spot. The problem here is that Tesla has not sent parts to my body shop and there's currently no ETA for when they will. I've been down this road with them before and am starting to think that the car is not going to be repaired in time for turn in?

Has anyone dealt with this before? Where does the responsibility lie? I mean, I know it's Tesla's fault because even the month and a half I've been waiting for parts already is completely absurd but will they understand this at lease turn in? If so, how does insurance work at that point?

On a side note, 3 years and 3 Teslas into ownership I can't believe this company is STILL taking months to ship replacement parts. If this was a more serious accident I'd have been without my $100,000 leased car for a month and a half so far and I know for sure they're not going to forgive that lease payment for their inability to ship parts in a timely manner.

 

[Mike K]

So nobody has been here before? Well poop.

 

[Barklikeadog]

You broke it you bought it! -Elon

 

[dbldwn02]

Sorry, can't help with your situation. I've also been waiting for a quarter panel and bumper for almost 3 months now. They really need to pick up the pace, cause car insurance is starting to get unbearable on these aluminum body cars. That, and $11k for a quarter panel and bumper is robbery!

 

[KyleDay]

Interesting dilemma. I feel for you. Perhaps you should call tesla and ask. Please report back. Their parts issues are a joke for sure.

 

[Need]

Maybe you could have the lease end inspection done on the damaged car and see how much penalty is added due to the damage. Go and ask if the insurance would pay that instead of the bodyshop to fix it?

 

[jeffpaul]

Checks from the insurance company for damages can be made payable to a repair shop *or* the owner(s) of the car. Tesla may be able to just take the check directly from the insurance company for the repair estimate in lieu of you getting it fixed.

 

[ChadFeldheimer]

My lessor was US Bank. I was in a similar situation towards lease end and inquired what would happen if repairs extended past lease end. They said that if I could not return the car by lease end, the lease would be extended and I would be on the hook for additional monthly lease payments.

The repair shop waited about one month for the Tesla emblem to arrive before deciding to go ahead with the repair without it. The emblem was ordered to be prepared in case the original one broke during removal. I suspect the body shop had a box of them from previous repairs that were unused, and eventually realized the silliness of waiting on Tesla.

I did not have the opportunity to test their claim of forcing lease extension, but I certainly believe it.

Returning the car unrepaired is an option, but if the insurance payout is less than the bank’s damage assessment, you-know-who is on the hook for the difference. If the insurance payout is higher, you benefit. But let’s not kid ourselves here

 

[Lydia49]

My Model x was in an accident May 1 and I still don't have it back. Tesla took forever to send parts and then sometimes they were the wrong parts. It just made it to Tesla yesterday and now Tesla says there are a lot more issues. I've tried everything with no end in sight.

 

[Barklikeadog]

My Model x was in an accident May 1 and I still don't have it back. Tesla took forever to send parts and then sometimes they were the wrong parts. It just made it to Tesla yesterday and now Tesla says there are a lot more issues. I've tried everything with no end in sight.

have any photos?

 

[Lydia49]

have any photos?

 

[Barklikeadog]

Did the windshield have those cloudlike smudges before or after the crash?

 

[jorobsand]

Watch out @Lydia49 !! @Barklikeadog sounds like an insurance claims adjuster in disguise!

 

[dbldwn02]

My Model x was in an accident May 1 and I still don't have it back. Tesla took forever to send parts and then sometimes they were the wrong parts. It just made it to Tesla yesterday and now Tesla says there are a lot more issues. I've tried everything with no end in sight.

That's heartbreaking. I feel for you. Surprised they haven't just called it a total yet. Looks pretty bad. My car literally had a dent in the quarter panel and bumper and it took 6 months to get fully fixed. I'm not exaggerating. I just got it fully fixed today.

If you don't mind me asking, did emergency auto braking help at all in this accident?

 

[Lydia49]

That's heartbreaking. I feel for you. Surprised they haven't just called it a total yet. Looks pretty bad. My car literally had a dent in the quarter panel and bumper and it took 6 months to get fully fixed. I'm not exaggerating. I just got it fully fixed today.

If you don't mind me asking, did emergency auto braking help at all in this accident?

I was going 55 mph and the other guy decided to cross 2 lanes of traffic in front of me to take a left from a street to my right. I hit the brakes. I'm not sure if the car saw it coming before I did. It happened so fast. I hit his driver side back door. I tried to swerve. The guy said he didn't look. He got a ticket. I was basically unharmed so that was good. I talked to Tesla yesterday and the body shop. They are saying I should get me car next week. We will see.

I feel for you. Totally sucks making payments on a car I can't drive. I'm in Florida and the insurance laws are terrible. My car insurance is going up $700 a year because of the accident.

 

[Lydia49]

Did the windshield have those cloudlike smudges before or after the crash?

Not sure I know what you are talking about

 

[Lydia49]

Watch out @Lydia49 !! @Barklikeadog sounds like an insurance claims adjuster in disguise!

Haha! The accident was 100% the other drivers fault.

 

[neroden]

For the lessee who wants to return the crash-damaged car at the end of the lease, since it won't be repaired by then: Read the exact terms of your lease. Make sure you have "GAP insurance" ("guaranteed asset protection" insurance). Then contact the bank who leased the car and see about evaluating the car and returning the car unrepaired -- find out what the "damage penalty" is. Send their damage estimate to the insurance company and get the insurance company to pay cash rather than repair; demand the same amount as the bank is demanding from you. (In fact, both the insurance company and the lessor may use the same people to estimate damages, but the point is, make them talk to each other and agree.)

 

[dmattmul]

I've got a little over a year to go on a S leased through Tesla. When I look under the car front bumper about 1 inch in there are scratches (probably a concrete parking pumper) they are 2 to 3 inches long and I'm pretty sure the credit card test won't hide them. Are these considered excess wear and tear? Anyone have experience? Seems should be a pretty common problem.