Tesla threatening my deposit

[ACA Man]

Here is my take. I certainly understand the frustration. At the same time, deposits are forefeited by law. You had many solutions than breaking a contract with Tesla, such as short lease. Guess what would happen if 100,000 people changes their mind for what ever reason, the company would fall short. And there are many people like you who dont know how to plan. If you are buying an exotic vehicle like Tesla, you gotta be patient and reasonable, work with the company. So in a nut shell Tesla will do the right thing not to refund and create confusion.

Put yourself in his shoes...what would you do?

 

[ACA Man]

Are you serious? Lol.

+1.

 

[jelloslug]

Put yourself in his shoes...what would you do?

I would have put some phone time in until someone was tired of hearing from me.

 

[bgbolton]

As a non-owner, 5th in line I had my fingers crossed for Christmas 2018. Getting an invite in February, Tesla was 10 months earlier then what I originally thought. I think there are about 400k people that put down $1k and now seem to forget the original 2020 timeline. Patiencs People!

The nonrefundable $2500 is not same as refundable $1000!!

There is no problem to wait to 2020 for refundable $1000. But I will not wait to 2020 after giving nonrefundable $2500 and I will not accept 0 response (even an automate sorry we slipped is good) when the estimated time passes when credit checks become involved.

 

[xav-]

Your statements don't sound right OP..... I don't think your car will be sold to anyone else. Did you ever get a VIN after you configured? Also, wouldn't a wise person finalize one purchase before going out to get another car? I would of made sure everything was squared away considering I paid and put myself in a binding contract for a Model 3 before buying another car.

OP is on the east coast so Tesla could have a financial incentive to do that. I am not suggesting that they did though.

 

[Olle]

This exact thing happened to me when I ordered my latest Model S.

I am an existing Tesla owner and have had a great experience with the sales and service staff so far. I was one of the first people in line to put down the deposit on the M3. When it asked me to configure it (about 2 months) ago, I was very excited and paid the $2,500 down payment. I then heard from my sales advisor that they were trying to get the car to me in a few days. This was about 5 weeks ago.

Then the SA went silent on me for a couple of weeks. My calls and emails were not answered. 3 weeks ago she told me that the car assigned to me was sold and they don't have a car for me. My current lease was overdue, which I had extended by a month for the M3. I told her that I am ok with ANY color as long as the car can be here in a week or so. Anyway, I got more silence from Tesla, so I gave up and purchased another car and asked that my down payment be refunded, leaving the initial $1000 deposit, so I could purchase the M3 at a future date.

But now Tesla called me yesterday and says I can either take delivery or they will forfeit my $3,500. I tried to explain that they are the ones that delayed the delivery of the car. And most people don't just add another car to their garage, but purchase cars as they need them and I don't need a 3rd car in my house. But they wouldn't listen and kept saying that I would loose my deposit.

I feel this is not very professional of Tesla. Being a fan boy and defending and promoting the brand to everyone, and this is the experience that I am having to go through, gives me pause.

This exact thing happened to me too when I ordered my latest Model S. I sold my old car (also a Tesla, not that it matters) and the new Tesla didn't arrive until a few months after planned delivery date. I rented a car to fill the gap. Albeit unhappy with the situation, it never occurred to me to ask for the deposit back what I can remember. It sounds far-fetched what you are asking for IMHO.

 

[ohmman]

mod note: a bunch of posts moved to snippiness. Personal attacks on members, new or old, are off limits. If someone needs help, provide help. If you don't believe their story, move on to another thread. If you absolutely must post something, try "Good luck."

 

[Outerspace]

Put yourself in his shoes...what would you do?

Exactly what I said earlier in another response. I will not break a contract that's valid and I do not change my mind, if I do I pay for my action. He found car is too expensive for him he changed his mind.

 

[ACA Man]

mod note: a bunch of posts moved to snippiness. Personal attacks on members, new or old, are off limits. If someone needs help, provide help. If you don't believe their story, move on to another thread. If you absolutely must post something, try "Good luck."

People can’t stop patronizing others though.

 

[Spidy]

Exactly what I said earlier in another response. I will not break a contract that's valid and I do not change my mind, if I do I pay for my action. He found car is too expensive for him he changed his mind.

That is not the impression I got. Tesla could not deliver the car he needed in time and at some point the wait just got too long and uncertain.

 

[MP3Mike]

The nonrefundable $2500 is not same as refundable $1000!!

The way I read things is that the non-refundable order deposit is $3,500. So when you place an order they apply your refundable $1,000 deposit towards the non-refundable deposit so that you only have to pay $2,500 more. And at that point the whole deposit is non-refundable.

 

[ACA Man]

That is not the impression I got. Tesla could not deliver the car he needed in time and at some point the wait just got too long and uncertain.

EXACTLY.

 

[puzz_k9]

OP here. Tesla M3 Sales called me on Thursday left a VM to see when I will take delivery, and then called again on Friday and left a VM saying that my order is cancelled and the $3,500 has been forfeited.

For weeks I couldn't get a hold of them, and now they decided I was a no show in 1 day.

 

[stayfocus18]

OP here. Tesla M3 Sales called me on Thursday left a VM to see when I will take delivery, and then called again on Friday and left a VM saying that my order is cancelled and the $3,500 has been forfeited.

For weeks I couldn't get a hold of them, and now they decided I was a no show in 1 day.

sorry to hear.

 

[voip-ninja]

OP here. Tesla M3 Sales called me on Thursday left a VM to see when I will take delivery, and then called again on Friday and left a VM saying that my order is cancelled and the $3,500 has been forfeited.

For weeks I couldn't get a hold of them, and now they decided I was a no show in 1 day.

Assuming you can prove your side of things, this should be a relatively straight-forward matter to resolve in small claims court, although of course it is a big inconvenience for you.

 

[ACA Man]

Unbelievable.

And this is Tesla?

 

[Roverman318]

Their first sentence started as "I am an existing Tesla owner and.." so one would assume they are current owner. I can't fathom how they could sell a car that has been assigned to you to someone else. Makes no sense. It's not like a traditional dealer where car is sitting on a lot and someone else can just buy it.

This actually happened to someone I know. He placed the order and received a VIN number. A week later the VIN disappeared from his profile. Waited a week or two and heard nothing from Tesla and he decided to call. They told him his car was sold to someone else by mistake. However, Tesla was able to find him another car within a week. This was before the factory shutdown.

 

[karmamule]

I'd imagine the laws governing this situation vary by state, so I'd recommend googling "<my state> consumer support" and hopefully you'll find a resource to talk to about your issue. For example when I searched "Massachusetts consumer support" I got led to this site.

If I were in your shoes I'd have done that before buying the other car, but that ship has sailed so perhaps whatever state you're in will have something similar and get you talking to people who can offer state-specific advice rather than the (sometimes helpful, sometimes not) speculation you'll get here.

 

[adaptabl]

You have no idea what you are talking about.

If the credit card company gave you money, it was to shut you up. They did not recoup the loss from the gym. Try your luck with a $2500 charge and watch what happens.

Yes they do. The credit card companies have many ways to recoup the money. We had a airline flight from hell a couple of years ago and all our money was refunded after a complaint with the credit card company. All we had to do was file in a form that the service was not delivered as promised.The airline tried to get us to pay after the money was returned but we told them to pound salt. Never heard from them again. Always pay by credit card, they have your back.

 

[SageBrush]

Yes they do. The credit card companies have many ways to recoup the money. We had a airline flight from hell a couple of years ago and all our money was refunded after a complaint with the credit card company. All we had to do was file in a form that the service was not delivered as promised.The airline tried to get us to pay after the money was returned but we told them to pound salt. Never heard from them again. Always pay by credit card, they have your back.

I was not saying that the credit card companies never recoup money, but there has to be a legal basis.