A software bug in a Tesla Supercharger has resulted in a massive bill for one Tesla electric car owner in China.
The obvious bug resulted in the Tesla owner being banned from using the EV maker’s Superchargers after they were accidentally charged more than $800,000 in fees.
It’s not exactly clear what caused the error, but a report from Teslarati hints that the error may have been caused by idle fees suggesting that the charger did not recognise the vehicle was no longer at the site.
According to the reports, the Model 3 owner was alerted by his phone’s Tesla app that he had been blocked, only to discover that he had been charged 3.8 million yuan ($A820,000).
Chinese EV news site CNEVpost reported that a bug had caused him to be charged for 1,923,720 kWh at the rate of RMB 2 per kWh – worth 32,000 0-100% charges on his 2020 Tesla Model 3 RWD.
According to the report, the Tesla owner had last used a Supercharger on February 27, topping up the battery of his Model 3 in a 20-minute charging session.
His charging history also shows that he had 2,285km worth of free Supercharging miles, and had used up the last of that on that day.
He reportedly contacted Tesla China, which thankfully confirmed that an error had occurred and that technicians would fix the issue.
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.
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