Please Read!! My 70yo dad bought a Tesla last summer. He was approved for a loan and Tesla delivered the car. However, there isn't a loan on the vehicle. Despite him making every effort, Tesla has made threats against him and disabled the car. But, he still cannot get anyone at Tesla to speak to him regarding the loan.
Read his story:
Dear Tesla,
For over a year now, I have attempted to resolve this matter. Tesla automated systems have not allowed any resolution to the problem, I have contacted fundraising, finance, support, legal and resolutions via email. always automated email it’s not their problem.
May 31, 2024 I purchased a vehicle with a loan rate of .99% a promotion at the time. I decided to get the promotion and invest $100,000 in Tesla stock. I Determined it would be a much better return on my money. And it was a good investment.
June 9, 2024 Tesla approved the loan and delivered the car to me.
July 2024 attempted to get the location where to send loan payments to to no avail. The tesla app does not show any loan information.
July 24, 2024 received an email from Tesla stating I had to pay an additional approximately $5,000 in a higher interest rate, or pay for the car and full, or the car would be repossessed within seven days without warning.
July 26, 2024 got a loan from my personal credit union for the car. Tesla would not respond to them or to me to provide us direction on how to transfer the money.
For the next 12 months, I have attempted to contact support, fundraising, finance, legal, press and resolutions by email and also any phone number I can find only get no response or to be referred back to “a third-party lender that Tesla says has a their loan, a company called Santander. Santander has no record of my information my Social Security number or the car the reservation number the VIN number they have nothing at all on the vehicle about a loan for me or on the car. Tesla legal department did respond with an automated email, stating if they felt it was a legal problem they would look into it. Again, nothing for 12 months.
July 21, 2025 Tesla remotely disabled the car trapping my 70-year-old wife in the car with heat index outside of 107° and a temperature inside the car was recorded at 149° and no ability to move the car that was blocking a commercial business. Spent three hours in the car, attempting to contact Tesla in every way possible only to be refused by support saying they could do nothing and that I had to contact this Santander company. support even refused any and all assistance to help me. Including having the car towed back to tesla Their advise to me was to call 911 if I thought there was any problem.
September 4, 2025 still no response from anyone at Tesla to my daily request to help get this resolved
All information provided to Tesla for the loan was honest, detailed and complete.
I am a retired, senior citizen with the stated monthly income and savings in the bank to pay for the car. This has caused me much mental stress and it’s now causing me health issues. And in 50 years of doing business I have never had a company so blatantly do a bait and switch in an attempt to increase the price of the car after the contract was signed, and the car was delivered, and the lack of any customer support.
-Mike Dibble