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Canceling The $1k Deposit On Your Tesla Model 3 Equals Refund Delays

Ever since Elon Musk took the wraps off the Model 3 last year, Tesla started taking $1,000 deposits for its least expensive electric vehicle yet. With mass production already underway and 455,000 reservation holders looking forward to delivery dates stretching into 2019, a lot of people decided to apply for a refund and wait for the manufacturer to step up its production capacity.
Tesla Model 3 8 photos
Photo: Tesla
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Don’t, however, expect Tesla to give the $1,000 back in a timely fashion. In an excellent write-up on Wired, Robbie Gonzales hits the nail on the head regarding the hardships of canceling one’s reservation. The author gives Shashank Chitti as a case in point, a gentleman who has yet to receive his rightful $1k even though Chitti canceled his Model 3 reservation in May 2017.

"Every time I reach out I get the same explanation: They have a lot of cancellations to process, they'll prioritize my request, and that my refund should go out in the next batch," Chitti told the cited publication. And he’s not alone in this, with plenty of other reservation holders taking to the Tesla Motors Forum to report the Palo Alto-based automaker’s shady approach.

Wired got in touch with 23 reservation holders seeking refunds, and only six of them received their $1,000 within the three weeks guaranteed by Tesla in the Model 3 Reservation FAQ. Two of the 23 got their money back within 21 business days, seven received the green dollar bills after six weeks or more, and the remaining reservation holders have yet to be refunded after waiting more than two months. Dear Tesla, get your act together. Signed, everyone.

All in all, Tesla needs to pay more attention to people who have parted ways with one thousand of their hard-earned dollars, money the automaker should return as timely as possible. Making up excuses and giving customers the cold shoulder won’t win Elon Musk and his cause any fans, nor the money Tesla needs to make the Model Y and next-generation Roadster happen.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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