Should Tesla pay towing for a warranty battery replacement?

[SilverString]

Last month Tesla had to tow my MS 200 miles from Clayton, NM to Santa Fe, NM for an HV battery replacement. Road side assistance incorrectly stated that my car was past its extended warranty - it was not and Tesla service verified that - and that the towing was going to be $1600 and that was not covered. However I had Tesla insurance so the first 50 miles was covered and that dropped the fee to $1200.

Tesla service in Santa Fe claimed battery failure warranty should cover all the towing, and that my car was also covered by Tesla's extended warranty. None-the-less I had to pay $1200 to the towing company and was assured by the service center that I would be reimbursed. I submitted the invoice a month ago and nothing from Tesla. A follow-up email has been unanswered for a week.

Suggestions?

 

[jmaddr]

Get the warranty doc for the year of your car. This example shows will cover the first 500 miles:
"
For vehicle malfunctions due to warrantable issues, transportation services, provided by Roadside Assistance, are covered by Tesla for the first 500 miles (800 km) to the nearest Tesla Service Center. You are responsible for transportation costs beyond 500 miles (800 km) or any additional transportation from such locations to any additional location. The vehicle must be covered by the New or Pre- Owned Vehicle Limited Warranty and located in the North America Region at the time Roadside Assistance is requested.
"

https://www.tesla.com/sites/default/files/New_Vehicle_Limited_Warranty_North_America_en_US.pdf

Is your car under the initial 4y/50k new warranty and was the tow to the closest SC? If so, you should be covered. If your car is 4y+ or 50k+ then this is muddier as this is technically under the "Battery and Drive Unit Limited Warranty" which I couldn't say yes or no falls under the the "New or Pre-owned.." verbiage above. I would think not but I'm not a lawyer.

I'm rooting for you as I'm out of the new warranty now but still under the extended one.

 

[SilverString]

Get the warranty doc for the year of your car. This example shows will cover the first 500 miles:
"
For vehicle malfunctions due to warrantable issues, transportation services, provided by Roadside Assistance, are covered by Tesla for the first 500 miles (800 km) to the nearest Tesla Service Center. You are responsible for transportation costs beyond 500 miles (800 km) or any additional transportation from such locations to any additional location. The vehicle must be covered by the New or Pre- Owned Vehicle Limited Warranty and located in the North America Region at the time Roadside Assistance is requested.
"

https://www.tesla.com/sites/default/files/New_Vehicle_Limited_Warranty_North_America_en_US.pdf

Is your car under the initial 4y/50k new warranty and was the tow to the closest SC? If so, you should be covered. If your car is 4y+ or 50k+ then this is muddier as this is technically under the "Battery and Drive Unit Limited Warranty" which I couldn't say yes or no falls under the the "New or Pre-owned.." verbiage above. I would think not but I'm not a lawyer.

I'm rooting for you as I'm out of the new warranty now but still under the extended one.

Thanks for this. Everybody agrees I should be reimbursed at this point - I'm just not getting any action. It was towed to the nearest service center, Santa Fe, which was 200 miles farther away from Austin. The Santa Fe service center said 500 miles towing for battery failure, extended warranty or not.

 

[RedTesY]

You might want to call them at ‭(877) 798-3752‬ and ask for status, or just give them a little more time.

 

[SilverString]

You might want to call them at ‭(877) 798-3752‬ and ask for status, or just give them a little more time.

Yea, I shot another email over to the service center. The guys there were really nice, but it’s a month out at this point. Ha ha that’s probably not much in Tesla time.

 

[krishna7007]

Yea, I shot another email over to the service center. The guys there were really nice, but it’s a month out at this point. Ha ha that’s probably not much in Tesla time.

same issue with me. I had my car stop in the high way because of defective Right sided Body harness. Had to pay $325 as towing charges, they would not tow if I did not pay it. I have been to service center multiple times, even though the guys there are sympathetic to what I say, but no one is ready to reimburse me. I don't know who I need to contact. send messages in the app, they close it without resolving the issue. when I call 877-798-3752, pressing 2, it says I have appointment. but it cannot get anyone to pickup the phone. which email to contact?

 

[TSLA Pilot]

Was this ever resolved? Were you reimbursed by Tesla?

Tesla has become, in many ways, a customer service nightmare company over the past few years, all of which I attribute to the guy at the top being distracted by the now half-dozen companies he runs . . . it's pathetic that customers have to deal with this sort of BS.

It's so many ways it's gone from Lexus+ in 2013 to Yugo- in 2024.

 

[sorka]

I thought Tesla only covered towing for the first 50K miles or 48 months which ever comes first? I think the statement by Tesla to the towing company that your warranty expired was because you're out of the bumper to bumper warranty which includes towing for the first 500 miles. You then interpreted service telling you the battery was under warranty to imply that Tesla told roadside assistance the wrong thing.

 

[Snerruc]

When my battery shorted out at 41000 miles, I used the app to tell Tesla I had a problem. Within 15 min they called me and said a brick had shorted and a tow truck would be there in 45 minutes. It was and they towed the car. 9:00 the next morning a friend dropped me at the service and a man handed me a fob for another S , told me to go to the app and click accept. The car immediately showed in my account.

 

[Jangy]

Was there a reason that Tesla didn't tow it? If OP hired a TOW company to tow it then OP does need to pay and get reimbursed. In SoCal, Tesla sends the tow truck. Paying first and getting reimbursed by insurance or warranty is never easy. Never. Good luck to OP and others in this situation.