Tesla settles solar roof class action lawsuit for $6 million

Tesla to pay just over $6 million to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by customers who faced sudden solar roof price spikes in 2021 after agreeing to install solar systems on their homes Agreed.
Tesla’s solar roof was previously known as Tesla’s “solar glass.” CEO Elon Musk first touted the system in 2016 as an architecturally appealing roofing product that produces energy and looks just as good as the shingles on a house without solar panels, reports CNBC. rice field.
The vitreous solar roof tiles he held up in a shareholder presentation while promoting Tesla’s then-planned acquisition of SolarCity were later turned out to be props, not working prototypes.
As CNBC previously reported, Tesla’s solar roof customers had signed a deal with the company and were ready to install systems in their homes, but were surprised by the sudden price hike in 2021, making it too expensive to proceed with the installation. payment was required.
The price increase was no small change. Matthew Amans, lead plaintiff in the class action lawsuit, said the price of the solar roof increased from about $72,000 in the original contract to about $146,000 per court filing.
Tesla raised the price of its solar installations at least twice that year, and required customers ordering solar panels and roof tiles to also order Powerwall home energy storage systems.
According to an amended class action settlement agreement filed in San Francisco U.S. District Court on July 10, 2023, approximately 8,636 Tesla customers were included in the group affected by the price hike as of the end of June this year, and customers 6,300 companies canceled solar roof deals with Tesla Energy after being surprised by changing costs and conditions.
According to the filing, Tesla has completed 1,656 solar roof contracts at the original price offered to customers, and as of the end of June, 57 more customers are planning to install solar roofs at the original price. Remaining customers who have not yet canceled or booked installation at the original price he reached 616.
Wood Mackenzie estimated that since Tesla touted the technology seven years ago, only 3,000 solar roof systems have been installed in the U.S. by early 2023.
In the energy sector, Tesla’s overall solar installed capacity (including both conventional solar panels and roof tiles) will drop by nearly half in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021, to 48 MW. became.
Tesla said the decline in solar installations at the time was due to delays in importing certain components beyond the company’s control.
By the first quarter of 2023, Tesla’s overall solar installed capacity will reach 67 MW, representing a 40% year-over-year increase. At the same time, Tesla’s energy storage system growth surged 360% year-over-year in Q1 2023, with home and business-scale backup batteries driving more revenue for Tesla’s energy division than solar installations. indicates that .
According to EnergySage, a marketplace that connects energy companies and customers, the national average cost of installing a 10-kilowatt solar panel in 2022 will be about $20,000 when the federal solar tax credit is taken into account.