Electric carmaker Tesla has begun to roll out of a vehicle insurance package for its customers, starting with those in California.
In a blog post overnight (Australian time) the carmaker published details of the offering that CEO and founder Elon Musk first announced at the carmaker’s Q1 2019 earnings call in April.
According to the carmaker’s blog post, the insurance package offered by Tesla will be cheaper than those offered by other insurers.
“Starting today, we’re launching Tesla Insurance, a competitively priced insurance offering designed to provide Tesla owners with up to 20% lower rates, and in some cases as much as 30%.
“Tesla Insurance offers comprehensive coverage and claims management to support our customers in California, and it will expand to additional U.S. states in the future,” the carmaker wrote.
Tesla Insurance launches today in California to offer better rates for Tesla owners.https://t.co/rDjbEvBxzY
— Tesla (@Tesla) August 28, 2019
To do this, Tesla is capitalising on its knowledge of its customers’ driving habits – when first discussed in April, Musk said that, “We essentially have an … information arbitrage opportunity where we have direct knowledge of the risk profile of customers.”
“And then if they want to buy Tesla insurance, they would have to agree to not drive the car in a crazy way. Or they can, but then their insurance rates are higher.”
We’re not exactly sure what Musk means by crazy driving, but Tesla also says the lower premiums are due to its vehicles’ safety features available through Autopilot.
“Because Tesla knows its vehicles best, Tesla Insurance is able to leverage the advanced technology, safety, and serviceability of our cars to provide insurance at a lower cost.
“This pricing reflects the benefits of Tesla’s active safety and advanced driver assistance features that come standard on all new Tesla vehicles,” the carmaker says.
The exact details of the insurance package are currently unavailable however (shortly after making the announcement the carmaker announced via Twitter that an algorithm update was being applied).
Algorithm update in progress
— Tesla (@Tesla) August 28, 2019
There is no word as yet on availability in Australia, although if commentary on social media in Australia about insurance costs for Tesla vehicles are anything to go by, the chance for 20% less expensive insurance will no doubt be welcomed.
Bridie Schmidt is associate editor for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She has been writing about electric vehicles since 2018, and has a keen interest in the role that zero-emissions transport has to play in sustainability. She has participated in podcasts such as Download This Show with Marc Fennell and Shirtloads of Science with Karl Kruszelnicki and is co-organiser of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum. Bridie also owns a Tesla Model Y and has it available for hire on evee.com.au.