Quebec court orders Tesla Canada to pay C$161,700 over burned Model X — Electrek

A court in Quebec, Canada, upheld a decision ordering Tesla Canada to pay C$161,700 to insurance company Intact. The insurer paid this amount to the owner of a 2020 Tesla Model X that burned in Montreal in March 2023, Electrek reports.

Fire after turning on the heating

The car’s owner, Sasha De Santis, was driving through Montreal’s Ahuntsic-Cartierville district with his girlfriend at about 1 a.m. on March 5, 2023. Shortly after turning on the heating, the cabin began filling with smoke. The couple stopped, got out of the vehicle and retrieved their belongings, and about five minutes later the SUV burned down.

Montreal police concluded that same year that the fire was not criminal in nature. Intact compensated the owner for the value of the vehicle and then demanded that Tesla Canada reimburse the payment.

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Court rejects Tesla’s motion

The insurance company noted that the Model X was still covered by Tesla’s factory warranty at the time of the fire. The manufacturer’s basic limited warranty in Canada is valid for four years or up to 80,000 kilometers, and the vehicle had been in use for about three years.

An expert report submitted to the court indicated that the fire began on the passenger side of the dashboard. It described a premature electrical malfunction as the likely cause of the fire. Intact initially obtained a default judgment, and Tesla Canada later asked the court to set it aside.

A Tesla representative argued in court that vehicle fires are usually caused by improper use or vandalism. Judge Ian Demers dismissed the motion, stating that the company had provided no data to support that version and had not presented a serious defense. Tesla Canada did not respond to a request for comment, while Intact declined to comment, noting that the deadline to appeal the decision had not yet expired.