Tesla implements series of new initiatives to improve its service as its fleet grows rapidly

After issues with its service centers in Norway and growing concerns in North America as its fleet grows rapidly with the Model 3, Tesla is announcing a series of new initiatives to improve its service globally and maintain owner satisfaction.

Earlier this month, we reported on how important service issues in Norway, Tesla’s biggest market by capita, were worrying as the situation gives a potential glimpse at the future in the automaker’s other markets.

At the time, Tesla announced a series of initiatives to improve the situation.

Plans to increase staff and capacity at service centers in Norway were encouraging for owners, but other concerns regarding parts availability were also worrying and not really addressed.

Now Tesla has confirmed in a statement to Electrek that they opened a new parts distribution center in California, which has tripled the automaker’s fulfillment capacity for parts in North America, and they plan to open a similar facility in Europe.

A Tesla spokesperson explained the automaker’s latest programs to improve service in a statement today:

“Our global customer satisfaction scores for service are above 90% and at a high of 97% for our mobile service program, which lets us service vehicles in customers’ driveways or at their offices. Even in North America where our customer-base has grown by 75% over the last year, customer satisfaction for service has remained consistently above 90%. Tesla has also topped Consumer Reports’ customer satisfaction survey two years in a row, with 90% of Tesla owners saying they would buy the same car again – more than any other brand. While we’re incredibly proud of the customer support and service we offer, we’re always working to improve. Here are some of the programs underway to make sure all Tesla customers have an even more exceptional experience:

• Last quarter, we opened a new parts distribution center in California, which has tripled our fulfillment capacity for parts in North America and is helping to expedite the supply of parts to third party body shops. We’re in the process of opening a similar fulfillment center in Europe, which we expect to have the same impact.
• For the first time, we’re trialing a small network of our own body repair shops in select markets to accommodate light repairs, with the opportunity to expand the program based on customer feedback and results.
• Given the overwhelming success of our mobile service program, we are expanding the program from 25% coverage globally to 40% coverage globally by the end of the year.
• While our call volumes have increased dramatically due to the overwhelming excitement around Model 3, this hasn’t impacted our ability to respond to emergency roadside events. We have plans in place to hire additional staff to support customers in the event that they are unable to find their answers on Tesla.com/Support or in their Tesla account.
• We are aggressively hiring and expanding in markets where our customer satisfaction scores for service are below average. In Norway, for instance, we have already grown our service team by 30% compared to last year, and we’re in the process of opening a large new service center in Oslo this year. Recent feedback from customers in Norway indicates that the improvements have already made a difference.”

Electrek’s Take

That’s really good news, especially when it comes to parts, which have been a problem for both service and body repair.

It was our main concern regarding Tesla’s response to our article about the service issues in Norway and the potential of them spreading to other markets. It looks like Tesla is taking it seriously.

We also get some interesting goals for the mobile service capacity, but that’s something that we already knew Tesla was aiming to expand rapidly.

Finally, roadside assistance has been a great service to attenuate concerns over a relatively new company and it is reassuring that Tesla plans to expand it with Model 3.

What do you think? Are you guys satisfied with Tesla’s response to concerns over service? Let us know in the comment section below.