Tesla could be forced to pay $162 million to Tesla owners in Norway following a preliminary judgement against the automaker over throttled charging speeds in some Model S vehicles.
More than 30 Norwegian Tesla owners filed the lawsuit in December 2020. They claimed a 2019 software update intentionally lowered the charging speeds of their 2013-2015 Model S vehicles.
Tesla did not file a response to the lawsuit, and as a result has been ordered to pay owners 136,000 kroner ($16,200 USD) each. More than 10,000 of the impacted Model S vehicles have been sold in the country according to nettavisen, meaning a potential total judgment of more than 1.36 billion Norwegian Kroner ($162 million USD).
The verdict was made April 29 but only announced on May 17, 2021.
Since Tesla did not file a response to the lawsuit, the verdict is considered an absence judgement. Tesla must pay the fine by May 31, or file an appeal to the Oslo Conciliation Board by June 17.
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An appeal is highly likely, which would result in a new court hearing.
The decision could set a precedent in other countries where Tesla is facing similar lawsuits. In neighbouring Denmark owners have also filed a lawsuit over throttled charging speeds, and are seeking 100,000 Danish Kroner ($16,380 USD) each in compensation, reports Berlingske.
