Tesla Ignores Own Stated Policy on 'HOLD'

[SageBrush]

I ordered a Model Y on 1/13 with an EDD of Jan - March, and called my service center (SC) on 1/17 to request a HOLD.
That request was not acted on, so I called the next day and was told it was in processing and to wait 5 days.
On 1/19 I was assigned a VIN. That same day I spent hours on the phone waiting for Tesla, and eventually reached a live person. That person agreed that the HOLD should have been placed, and the policy in effect is to allow a customer a HOLD period based on the the EDD (March in my case) when the order was placed if the VIN has not been assigned, but up to 14 days if the VIN is assigned.

The Rep did not have the authority to place the HOLD, and so spoke with his manager. He then told me that his manager would only agree to a 14 day hold.

I canceled the order, and was notified that my $250 order fee was forfeited.

----
Ughh. It used to be true that first tier customer support was hard to reach, and prone to mistakes. Now Tesla has added willful violation of its own policies by upper tier customer 'support' to its woes.

 

[donblackie8]

Im confused.....what is the purpose of placing an order then requesting a "hold"?

 

[SageBrush]

Im confused.....what is the purpose of placing an order then requesting a "hold"?

Life happens

My specific reasons are besides the point. Tesla policy related to the $250 order fee includes HOLD provisions. Those policies were ignored. I don't know how to be any clearer.

 

[Thepaperlion]

Have your credit card company charge back.

 

[schen72]

Have your credit card company charge back.

If you're really unhappy about the lost money, and you are okay with the possibility of Tesla banning you from future purchases, then definitely charge back.

 

[jjrandorin]

I ordered a Model Y on 1/13 with an EDD of Jan - March, and called my service center (SC) on 1/17 to request a HOLD.
That request was not acted on, so I called the next day and was told it was in processing and to wait 5 days.
On 1/19 I was assigned a VIN. That same day I spent hours on the phone waiting for Tesla, and eventually reached a live person. That person agreed that the HOLD should have been placed, and the policy in effect is to allow a customer a HOLD period based on the the EDD (March in my case) when the order was placed if the VIN has not been assigned, but up to 14 days if the VIN is assigned.

The Rep did not have the authority to place the HOLD, and so spoke with his manager. He then told me that his manager would only agree to a 14 day hold.

I canceled the order, and was notified that my $250 order fee was forfeited.

----
Ughh. It used to be true that first tier customer support was hard to reach, and prone to mistakes. Now Tesla has added willful violation of its own policies by upper tier customer 'support' to its woes.

Thats unfortunate. The only thing I would say is, is that hold policy documented anywhere? I mean, I know we read about it here, and from reading about it here I was under the impression that tesla implemented that policy late last year when they were cracking down on vehicle holds.

Is it in the MVPA or documented elsewhere?

 

[outdoors]

Thats unfortunate. The only thing I would say is, is that hold policy documented anywhere? I mean, I know we read about it here, and from reading about it here I was under the impression that tesla implemented that policy late last year when they were cracking down on vehicle holds.

Is it in the MVPA or documented elsewhere?

Seems pretty clear cut. Would not suggest the charge back.

 

[SageBrush]

Is it in the MVPA or documented elsewhere?

An internal email from ~ Sept/Oct 2022 clarifying the HOLD policy was leaked. And FWIW the CSR confirmed the policy was in effect when I spoke with Tesla yesterday.

 

[smallindiana]

I’m confused I thought the policy was that the hold would only apply to the first EDD. So in your case January.

For my specific hold I ordered in May 2022. The original EDD was February - April. Tesla granted me a hold till February (first month of original EDD).

I resumed my order on January 15th.

 

[jjrandorin]

An internal email from ~ Sept/Oct 2022 clarifying the HOLD policy was leaked. And FWIW the CSR confirmed the policy was in effect when I spoke with Tesla yesterday.

Ok,

I hear what you are saying, and I also understand what you are saying. With that being said, an internal policy from Tesla is subject to change at any time. Well, customer facing policies are subject to change at any time too, actually, but if it was a customer facing policy and you could prove that you took action based on that, then you might have something to go at them with.

If its an internal policy, then as I am sure you are aware, even if that is the policy they were following, they are not really under any obligation to continue it.

So, in effect, you ordered based on information we had on leaked internal policies, and those policies changed, so you are out $250. I get the frustration, but there shouldnt be any expectation that a leaked internal policy is still in effect for your order, just a "hope" that it would be. I still get the frustration though /shrug.

 

[outdoors]

I wouldn't have cancelled the order. If you look at the MVPA it says Tesla may cancel, and may keep. That is from Tesla's page.

I understand dealing with a company that seems unreasonable at times is very frustrating. Yet from what I read you forced the issue by cancelling. The 14 day issue was offered per MVPA. Notifying them doesn't help one outside the 14 day period.

Internal documents don't really help unless we are talking whistle blower type stuff. Think chromium something in the water with some actress named Roberts.

 

[UncleCreepy]

Also, why would an internal document that wasn't part of the order process trump the order agreement that you specifically agreed to? This is assuming that the order agreement in post #7 was current when you ordered. As @jjrandorin said, the frustration is understandable, but I don't think that Tesla has done anything wrong here.

 

[Happy Hippo]

How long would you want to the hold for? If a week or so two you should be able to do it. I did it in December. But if you want the hold longer, its best to just cancel and reorder.

 

[jjrandorin]

How long would you want to the hold for? If a week or so two you should be able to do it. I did it in December. But if you want the hold longer, its best to just cancel and reorder.

@SageBrush has been around tesla and tesla vehicles for a while. I obviously have zero clue as I dont know @SageBrush other than posts on TMC, but I can tell you what "I" would be doing if I was interested in buying a new tesla right now, but could possibly make due without till mid to end of march....


===================================================

I would order now, and immediately put the car on hold for the longest period they allowed me to, then wait to see if / when the rumored HW 4 / new camera's materialized.

If people were getting verified deliveries with that hardware, then I would take delivery (in mid to late march) of the car I ordered now, to give Tesla a chance to both announce the new hardware, and also "people online" to do the inevitable breakdown to verify its actually there. Doing it this way would get me locked into pricing right now, and allow me to take advantage of these low prices in effect right now (and the tax credit now) while still waiting for the new hardware.

If tesla was not delivering the new hardware by the time my hold period in March was up, I would make a decision on taking delivery (and ensuring the full tax credit) or not, and possibly not getting the tax credit) based on what hardware was being delivered, and how people thought it would be able to be (or not be) retrofitted.

I would then make a decision to forfeit my $250 deposit or not, based on that.

==================================================

Tesla not following their internal hold policy would throw a huge wrench in that, because I would not get that "float time" to see what hardware is being delivered... and any person who has been around Tesla for a while knows that its best to wait for verified deliveries of stuff you are interested in, vs promises of things working "later".

I would like to stress that the above is "what jjrandorin would do if he was interested in getting a new Tesla at these prices right now" and why I might want to order and put a car on hold (ensure getting one with the maximum tax credit) vs waiting for the hardware, then trying to squeeze it in later. No idea if the above relates to @SageBrush at all.

So.. yeah I get the frustration, If I was trying to do the above I would be frustrated at Tesla throwing a wrench in my plan above. I would understand it though.

 

[TomB985]

I’d be frustrated as well, but I don‘t think you’re going to win this one.

Tesla’s internal policy doesn’t matter. It’s all about the contract between you and the company, which states that they can cancel the order if you don’t take delivery within 14 days. It doesn’t say they will cancel the order, which gives them flexibility to structure their internal policies to be more generous. But you agreed to take delivery within 14 days when you entered into the agreement and placed your deposit.

I’m pissed at Tesla’s customer service for a completely separate reason, so I’m not trying to defend how they deal with their customers. But they had every right to cancel your reservation under the terms that you agreed to.

 

[SageBrush]

I can tell you what "I" would be doing if I was interested in buying a new tesla right now, but could possibly make due without till mid to end of march....

I erred in adding to my Title the $250 lost. That is really not the intended focus of my thread. I thought it important for people to hear that Tesla did not honor its own company policy at the higher levels of customer support. A company is only as good as its word, and I'm saddened that Tesla lost sight of that in my case. That Tesla then took the $250 is just icing on the cake.

Would you please edit my title to
Tesla Ignores Own Stated Policy on 'HOLD'

 

[SageBrush]

It’s all about the contract between you and the company, which states that they can cancel the order if you don’t take delivery within 14 days.

I read the contract to mean 14 days from VIN assignment. The Tesla CSR looked up the policy and said the same. But since I requested a HOLD before the VIN was assigned, the VIN should not have been assigned before the end of the EDD Tesla gave when I ordered the car. And once again, the Tesla CSR told me the same thing and requested a HOLD until March. His supervisor refused that request.

 

[jjrandorin]

I erred in adding to my Title the $250 lost. That is really not the intended focus of my thread. I thought it important for people to hear that Tesla did not honor its own company policy at the higher levels of customer support. That Tesla then took the $250 is just icing on the cake.

Would you please edit my title to
Tesla Ignores Own Stated Policy on 'HOLD'

Done, per your request.

 

[flgatorfan]

I erred in adding to my Title the $250 lost. That is really not the intended focus of my thread. I thought it important for people to hear that Tesla did not honor its own company policy at the higher levels of customer support. That Tesla then took the $250 is just icing on the cake.

Would you please edit my title to
Tesla Ignores Own Stated Policy on 'HOLD'

The confusion I have with this is the "stated policy" part. Sounds like it's been stated by some CSR, and some leaked email. Based on that it seems to be true, but only internally. Has Tesla actually stated this somewhere to customers?

 

[SageBrush]

I would like to stress that the above is "what jjrandorin would do if he was interested in getting a new Tesla at these prices right now" and why I might want to order and put a car on hold (ensure getting one with the maximum tax credit) vs waiting for the hardware, then trying to squeeze it in later. No idea if the above relates to @SageBrush at all.

It does not. And I want to re-emphasize that my motivations really are besides the point. I get that people often have a narrow POV and make judgements and decisions through the narrow prism of personal financial gain. Some want to discount the *point* of this thread by implying that I tried to game the EV credit and lost. That is not the case, but regardless -- it is irrelevant. The relevant issue here is that Tesla did not follow its own policy.

In general I find Tesla policy to be reasonable and even handed ... when it is followed. I now do not trust Tesla to honor its policy. As a TSLA stakeholder I find that disheartening and troubling, since it flies in the face of my support of Tesla as a force that will accelerate the transition to renewable transport.