Sino-Singapore Jingwei Client, October 20th (Fu Yumei) After two reductions in vehicle prices within half a month, the news of Tesla China's cancellation of the 7-day confidence guarantee plan has caused heated discussion.
Initially, in response to price adjustment compensation, Tesla once proposed to give car owners who meet the 7-day confidence guarantee plan the right to use charging.
Now the cancellation of this plan has caused dissatisfaction with old car owners.
Legal sources pointed out that Tesla’s frequent price cuts and cancellation of guarantee policies did not violate current relevant laws and regulations, but it undoubtedly reduced Tesla’s brand image in consumers’ hearts.
In addition, consumers who believe that the sales have concealed relevant policies and induced price cuts after picking up the car have certain difficulties in obtaining evidence and safeguarding their rights.
New Jingwei photo by Fu Yumei in Tesla data map
Cancel the unreasonable return policy after frequent price cuts
According to Tesla's confidence guarantee program launched in November 2018, if the owner is not satisfied with the new Tesla car, and the vehicle odometer reading does not exceed 1,600 kilometers, the "new car limited warranty" has not expired, and the vehicle is not damaged. , The vehicle can be returned within 7 calendar days after delivery.
According to the official website of Tesla China, the "Tesla Confidence Guarantee Program" has been terminated and offline on October 16, 2020, and subsequent car purchase orders will no longer enjoy the protection of the program.
Not long ago, Tesla China cut prices twice in half a month.
On October 1, Tesla's official website in China showed that the price of the domestic Model 3 standard battery life upgraded version was reduced from 271,55 thousand yuan to 249,900 yuan, and the long-range rear-wheel drive version was subsidized from 344,050 yuan. The price of Performance high-performance version remains unchanged at RMB 309,000.
On October 13th, Tesla China announced again that the Model S long-life version and high-performance version will be reduced by 23,000 yuan.
It is worth noting that after the price cut on the 1st, Tesla Vice President of External Affairs Tao Lin once posted on Weibo: "In response to this price adjustment, car owners who meet the 7-day confidence guarantee plan will give 3 years of free overcharge rights. "
Tao Lin also said on Weibo on the 2nd: “In the automotive industry, implementing the 7-day confidence guarantee plan is actually not an easy decision. It requires manufacturers to pay huge costs behind it. This is why most car manufacturers and dealers There is no reason for the company to introduce this measure. We have full confidence in the power of our products and sincerely hope to give customers a better experience."
Today, this confidence guarantee plan has been cancelled.
Some viewpoints mentioned that it will be more difficult for new purchasers to ask for compensation for the price difference if they encounter Tesla's sudden price reduction in the future.
On the 20th, a reporter from China-Singapore Jingwei as a consumer asked Tesla customer service why the confidence protection plan was cancelled. The other party said that the plan was launched in 2018 because most consumers did not recognize electric vehicles very much, and at that time it was to give consumers This plan was launched only after a assured car purchase guarantee.
"But now electric vehicles have gradually been accepted by the public, so we have also taken this plan off the line, so as to invest this aspect of the cost in other research and development and after-sales experience."
Fang Da, a lawyer from Beijing Jingshi (Shanghai) Law Firm, told the Sino-Singapore Jingwei client that regarding the cancellation of the 7-day guarantee policy, legally, the guarantee policy is Tesla’s service commitment to consumers, but it is not legally mandatory. Sexuality regulations still fall into the category of autonomous decision, and Tesla can choose to provide or not provide this policy.
Although there is no violation of the legal provisions, the fact that the cancellation of the 7-day unreasonable return of the car has actually had a negative impact on Tesla's reputation.
Is frequent price reduction reasonable?
Compared with the cancellation of the guarantee policy, car owners are more troubled by Tesla's move to adjust the price of "disagreement".
On the one hand, price cuts have increased the desire of wait-and-see consumers to buy cars; on the other hand, frequent price cuts have brought dissatisfaction among old car owners.
On social media, many car owners expressed their “worry” that they encountered price cuts as soon as they picked up the car, and some car owners reported that they repeatedly confirmed to sales that they would not cut the price, and they saw the news of the price cut within a few days of picking up the car.
Previously, car owners who met the 7-day guarantee plan were able to give away 3 years of free overcharge usage rights. Now this plan has also been cancelled.
Weibo comment screenshot
Yuhang, the owner of the Shenzhen Tesla Model 3, told reporters from Sino-Singapore Jingwei that he originally wanted to buy a car during the National Day, but in late September, he confirmed with Tesla sales many times that the price of the car would not be reduced in the short term, so he placed a deposit to pick up the car.
And only half a month later, the price of the vehicle dropped by more than 20,000, and the owners who bought the car within 7 days could enjoy the three-year super electric rights, while the new car owners who bought the car within 7 days did not have any compensation measures. It's like harvested'leeks'."
Fangda stated to the Sino-Singapore Jingwei client that the behavior of Tesla's price adjustment is the independent behavior of market entities for product pricing, and does not violate current relevant laws and regulations, but it undoubtedly reduces Tesla's brand image in consumers' minds.
For some car owners who believe that they were induced by sales to place an order and therefore missed the price reduction, Li Yi, a lawyer at the Beijing Bank of China Law Firm, previously told the Zhongxin Jingwei client whether this situation could be deemed a legal infringement It is quite difficult. If it is only the verbal statement of the salesperson without any form of evidence retained, then the consumer claims that the purchase of the vehicle is determined by the relevant circumstances promised by the salesperson, and the salesperson’s behavior is consistent with Tesla It is very difficult to connect as a subject.
Whether the price reduction of a model should compensate the early consumers is undoubtedly a test for the new forces of car-making with rapid product changes.
A reporter from China-Singapore Jingwei noted that during the National Day, Xiaopeng Motors issued price-insurance measures, saying that from October 1, 2020 to February 11, 2021, if the national retail price decreases after the P7 subsidy, Xiaopeng Motors promised All customers who previously purchased Xiaopeng P7 will be given price difference compensation (undelivered users) or compensation equivalent of Xiaopeng Mall points (delivered users).
It is still worth noting that some research institutions have pointed out that Tesla still has room for price drops in the future.
Ping An Securities analyzed that by splitting Model 3 costs, if bicycles maintain a steady-state gross profit margin of 25% and achieve 100% localization rate, the lowest price of domestic Model 3 will remain at 200,000-220,000.
In the future, will Tesla have new user solutions in response to price changes?
Journalists from Sino-Singapore Jingwei will continue to pay attention.
(Zhongxin Jingwei APP)
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