Brookfield Residential
- A California man filed a lawsuit against Tesla, saying the company hiked his price multiple times.
- The class-action complaint said a Tesla rep told the man a 41% price hike was a "corporate decision."
- A $64,735 roofing project was increased to $95,107 but then lowered, the complaint said.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
A Tesla customer in California said in a class-action lawsuit that the tech company raised the price of Solar Roof projects multiple times after he signed a contract.
According to Babek Malek's lawsuit, the first 41% price increase was a "corporate decision," according to his lawsuit. The suit called the company's actions a "bait and switch."
Malek, of West Hills, filed the complaint this month, adding to a handful of other federal class-action lawsuits over Solar Roof price changes filed in California and Pennsylvania. Each of the lawsuits said Tesla raised prices after customers signed contracts. A California judge was set to decide whether some or all of the lawsuits would be combined into a single class-action lawsuit.
The details of Malek's contract changes followed a pattern similar to what other homeowners described.
In January, Malek he said signed a contract for $64,735 to have a Solar Roof installed on his 3,615-square-foot roof.
In April, Tesla on its website raised Malek's contract price by 41% to $91,400, according to his complaint.
"[Malek] made several attempts to contact project advisors at Tesla to no avail," the lawsuit said. "He finally was able to make contact with one advisor, who gave no explanation for the change in the contract price other than 'corporate decision.'"
In June, Tesla again upped the contract price, raising it to $95,107, about 47% higher than his original contract, according to the complaint.
In July, Tesla decreased the expected electricity output of Malek's Solar Roof and also decreased the price to $90,367.44, the complaint said.
Tesla didn't respond to a request for comment. Lawyers for Malek also didn't respond to a request for comment.
As with previous complaints filed over Solar Roof pricing, Malek's suit sought class-action status. The suit said Malek in June opted out of an arbitration agreement in the newest contract.
The lawsuit said Tesla violated the Truth in Lending Act, breached its contract, and violated several California laws.
"Many customers have waited months before being presented with a new, more expensive contract, thereby starting a new clock for their installation timeline," Malek's complaint said.