Tesla Fined 2.8 Billion Won for Falsifying Driving Range and Exaggerating Charging Performance

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunju Lee] Tesla has been fined 2.85 billion KRW for exaggerated advertising of electric vehicles. The company is accused of exaggerating or deceptively advertising the driving range, charging performance, and fuel cost savings of its electric vehicles.

On the 3rd, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) announced that it decided to impose corrective orders, a provisional fine of 2.852 billion KRW, and a penalty of 1 million KRW on Tesla Korea LLC and Tesla Incorporated for violations of the Act on Labeling and Advertising and the Electronic Commerce Act. According to the KFTC, Tesla falsely, exaggeratedly, or deceptively advertised the driving range, Supercharger charging performance, and fuel cost savings of its electric vehicles on its domestic website from August 16, 2019, to the present.

From August 16, 2019, to the present, Tesla stated on its domestic website that its vehicles could "drive more than 528 km on a single charge," which refers to the certified driving range measured by fully charging the battery once under standard temperature and combined conditions. However, Tesla advertised as if the vehicles could travel even farther. Regarding Supercharger charging performance, Tesla advertised that it could charge 247 km within 30 minutes (15 minutes) under the term "Supercharger" without specifying the exact type and conditions. The KFTC judged that since these results were obtained under optimal test conditions, it is difficult to achieve the advertised performance in practice.

Additionally, Tesla assumed a charging cost of 135.53 KRW per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and presented specific figures for fuel cost savings in its advertisements. However, there was no indication of the reference point or additional explanations for this standard, and Tesla omitted the fact that charging costs vary significantly depending on the charger provider, charging speed, and government price discount policies. The KFTC regarded this as a violation of the Act on Labeling and Advertising and imposed corrective orders and fines.

The KFTC stated, "We will continue to monitor unfair labeling and advertising practices that may mislead consumers about product performance and continuously inspect and manage acts that restrict or interfere with consumers' rightful exercise of order cancellation (withdrawal of subscription) rights online. We plan to strive to ensure that accurate information is delivered to consumers and that a trustworthy consumption environment is established."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.