Tesla refuses to deliver Model 3 to Pinduoduo group-buying owners, saying it does not comply with delivery policy

On the afternoon of August 14, Sina Technology exclusively learned that Tesla has refused to deliver Model 3 to Pinduoduo group buying owners. The delivery specialist from Tesla claimed that this activity did not comply with Tesla's delivery policy.

Information provided by a car owner from Wuhan showed that Tesla's delivery specialist refused to deliver the car to the owner on the grounds that "our company suspects that this order was placed by Pinduoduo or other merchants in your name. In fact, it constitutes concealing the true order information from our company. Our company's previous announcement has stated that Pinduoduo's group purchase activity is unauthorized. You should request the merchant who paid for the car to deliver the vehicle or get a refund."

If the Tesla Model 3 in the event is delivered to consumers by Yimaiche, it may be suspected of illegal advertising because Yimaiche stated in the event information that the models sold are new. If it is delivered by Yimaiche, the vehicle has actually become a used car, not a "new car" as advertised, and Yimaiche needs to pay triple compensation to consumers.

Tesla's delivery specialist claimed that the actions of Pinduoduo and Yimaiche violated the prohibition of resale clause clearly stipulated in the Tesla car order terms, and Tesla would cancel the order in accordance with the contractual breach of contract clause for the car buyer. He also advised the Wuhan car owner to place the order through Tesla's official channels.

Information provided by the car owner showed that he paid 270,550 yuan to Tesla Motors Sales and Service (Wuhan) Co., Ltd. through a Citibank account. Together with the first deposit of 1,000 yuan, the total amount of 271,550 yuan is consistent with the subsidized price of the Model 3 Standard Range Upgrade Edition shown on Tesla's official website.

This also means that Yimaiche has provided nearly 20,000 yuan in subsidies to car buyers. However, Sina Technology has exclusively learned that a financing consulting company is conducting a new round of financing for Yimaiche, and it is not ruled out that this activity is for publicity purposes. In April 2019, Yimaiche announced that it had completed a multi-million yuan A round of financing led by Xiangfeng Investment, and a 150 million yuan A+ round of financing jointly led by GGV Capital and BlueRun Ventures.

A lawyer told Sina Technology that Tesla's prohibition on resale is not necessarily legally valid. First, the essence of this business model is that Pinduoduo provides subsidies to users, and Tesla cannot prove that this is called resale. Second, the "Consumer Rights Protection Law of the People's Republic of China" stipulates that operators shall not exclude or restrict consumer rights, reduce or exempt operator responsibilities, increase consumer responsibilities, and other unfair and unreasonable regulations to consumers through standard terms, notices, statements, store notices, etc., and shall not use standard terms and technical means to force transactions. Restricting users from reselling goods that they have property rights is actually a restriction on transactions.

In July 2020, a limited-time flash sale for 2019 Tesla Model 3 appeared on Pinduoduo, with a price of 251,800 yuan, 40,000 yuan cheaper than the official guide price. The organizer of the event was Yimaiche. The store customer service told Sina Technology that the Tesla Model 3 mentioned in the event is a brand new vehicle that requires a one-time payment and will be delivered to the owner at the store where the owner is located. If there is no store in the owner's location, it will be delivered by logistics.

Tesla issued a statement on July 21, saying that it had no cooperation with Yimaiche or Pinduoduo on the group buying event, nor had it engaged in any form of commissioned sales services with Yimaiche or Pinduoduo, nor had it sold any of its own vehicles to Yimaiche or Pinduoduo for the group buying event. Tesla also stated that if consumers have any disputes or their rights are damaged due to the above group buying event, Tesla will not bear any responsibility.

In response to Tesla’s statement, the platform Pinduoduo also responded that the cars sold in the event were brand new Teslas and the subsidies were real.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.