Tesla Solar Roof Class Action Lawsuit and $6 Million Settlement
Tesla has reached a settlement in a class-action lawsuit brought by its customers, agreeing to pay a sum slightly exceeding $6 million. The lawsuit involved more than 8,000 customers in the affected group.
The class-action lawsuit stemmed from abrupt price hikes in ordered photovoltaic (PV) roofs, which occurred in 2021 and affected customers who had already entered into contracts with Elon Musk’s company. As an example, the cost of one order surged from around $72,000 as stipulated in the initial contract to roughly $146,000.
Data from the San Francisco District Court reveals that over 6,300 customers chose to cancel their contracts due to these price increases. Tesla ultimately fulfilled 1,656 solar roof contracts at the originally agreed-upon prices.
Development of solar roofs
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, initially introduced the solar roof system in 2016, presenting it as a visually appealing product that not only generates energy but also blends seamlessly with the aesthetics of regular roofs, without the conspicuous appearance of traditional photovoltaic panels.
During a shareholder presentation where Tesla was planning to acquire SolarCity, Musk showcased a glassy solar roof tile. However, it was later revealed that the tile he held was a mockup and not a functional prototype.
Since that presentation, Tesla has managed to install approximately 3,000 solar roofs. While this is a notable achievement, it falls short of expectations given the increasing demand for photovoltaic systems.
Decreased demand for PV from Tesla
In the energy sector, the total installations of Tesla’s photovoltaic (PV) systems, which encompass both traditional PV panels and roof tiles, experienced a significant drop, nearly halving to 48 megawatts (MW) during the first quarter of 2022 when compared to the same period in 2021.
Tesla attributed these declines to delays in the importation of certain components, with the company indicating that it had no control over the supply interruptions that caused the decrease in installations.