Not upheld: fairness of charges for vehicle damage and excess mileage complaint against Tesla Financial Services Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr F complained about charges totalling £620 for vehicle damage and £1,475.10 for excess mileage applied by TFS when he returned a hired car at the end of his agreement in November 2025. The damage included scratches to the bumper with missing paint and scuffing to two alloy wheels. The ombudsman assessed the damage charges against BVRLA industry guidelines and found that both the bumper damage and wheel scuffing exceeded acceptable fair wear and tear thresholds, making the charges reasonable. For the mileage charge, the ombudsman calculated that Mr F drove 49,033 miles against an entitlement of 38,411 miles, resulting in 10,622 excess miles at the contractual rate of 16.5p per mile, and found no persuasive evidence the charge was unreasonable. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the BVRLA industry guidelines as the standard for assessing fair wear and tear. The bumper damage showed missing paint, which exceeded the acceptable threshold of surface scratches of 25mm or less where primer or bare metal is not showing. The alloy wheel scuffing exceeded the acceptable 50mm threshold on two wheels. The mileage charge calculation was mathematically sound: Mr F drove 49,033 miles against an entitlement of 38,411 miles, resulting in 10,622 excess miles. Even accounting for collection miles and repair-related mileage, the ombudsman found no persuasive evidence that the repair costs were unreasonable or that the excess mileage charge was disproportionate.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website