Tesla starts selling its own car insurance in California
Tesla on Wednesday announced that it's now offering Tesla Insurance to customers in California.
The company said its offering could also be the maximum amount as 30% but other insurance plans, although it didn't provide specific costs.
Tesla Insurance is merely available in California to start out, but the corporate said it'll “expand to additional U.S. states within the future.” Tesla customers in California can get a quote in as little as a moment, and people who have already ordered cars can request a quote with their vehicle number.
Tesla Insurance is often cancelled at any time, Tesla said.
CEO Elon Musk told shareholders in an earnings call in April that Tesla would be launching its own auto insurance product, likely by the top of May.
After Musk announced those plans, Warren Buffett criticized the strategy for Tesla. The “oracle of Omaha,” predicted that the Tesla would struggle because it ventures into auto insurance, a field during which Berkshire Hathaway thrives.
“It’s not a simple business,” Buffett told shareholders at the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting. “The success of the auto companies stepping into the insurance business is perhaps as likely because of the success of the insurance companies stepping into the auto business.”
As Automotive News previously reported, “While auto insurance rates vary greatly and depend upon factors including age, location and driving history, Teslas have generally been costlier to insure than competing vehicles due to their technology and parts costs.”
Largely due to the high costs of repairing a Tesla after a collision, ValuePenguin estimates the typical cost of insuring a Tesla vehicle within the US ranges from $1,913 per annum for a Model 3, the company’s most affordable model, to $2,963 per annum for a Model S 90 D, its highest-end car.