Bellerose v. Les Véhicules Tesla Canada

On September 13, 2023, the honorable Lukasz Granosik (j.c.s.) of the Superior Court of Québec authorized a class action against the defendant Tesla Motors Canada ULC and granted the status of representative plaintiff to Mr. Jean-François Bellerose. On November 19 2024, the class represented by Mr. Bellerose was redefined as follows [translation from the authorization decision rendered in french]:

“All natural and legal persons domiciled or having been domiciled in Québec who purchased or leased long term a Tesla Model 3 or Model Y vehicle between January 1, 2018, and May 15, 2025:

(a) which sustained paint deterioration while the vehicle was less than 48 months old.

and/or

A.1) who, after the conclusion of their contract, had protective measures installed on their vehicle, at their own expense, to prevent and/or limit paint damage;

and

(b) while Tesla omitted to inform its clients purchasing or leasing a vehicle of the existence of a risk of paint deterioration on its vehicles.

Excluding all persons whose Tesla Model 3 or Model Y vehicle purchase agreement contains an arbitration clause which has not been waived in writing within 30 days of the execution of the purchase agreement and who have not contracted as consumers.”

The nature of the class action exercised by the representative plaintiff on behalf of the members is a class action for damages against the defendant.

The representative plaintiff invokes two causes of action. He alleges that the defendant breached the legal guarantee of quality, the guarantee of use and the guarantee of durability both under the Civil Code of Quebec and the Consumer Protection Act (CPA). Furthermore, he alleges that the defendant would have committed a prohibited practice within the meaning of the LPC, and would have failed to meet its obligation to inform according to the C.c.Q.

The Court has not yet decided whether the representative plaintiff’s claims are well founded, and the allegations in the class action have not yet been proven. The defendant is contesting the merits of the class action and submits, among other things, that the Model 3 and Model Y vehicles are not affected by any defect and that the paint does not deteriorate prematurely, and that it has not failed to respect its obligation to inform or to disclose an important fact to the class members.

The main conclusions sought by the representative against the defendant are summarized in particular as follows:

• The payment of a sum to be determined in order to cover the following reimbursements:
  1. The amount of work required to repair, limit or prevent damage to the paint.
  2. The cost (parts and labor) of the protective measures required to delay, limit or prevent damage to their vehicles, Model 3 and Model Y.
  3. $500.00 per member for moral damages
  4. $500.00 per member as damages for the defendant’s failure to fulfill its obligation to provide information,
  5. Collective recovery of claims and their individual settlement

If you wish to remain a class member, you have nothing to do. If you wish to opt-out, you have until July 14, 2025 to advise the clerk of the Superior Court of Quebec, District of Montreal, at 1 Notre Dame Street East, Montreal, Quebec, H2Y 1B6, by registered mail. Please make sure to mention file no. 500-06-001069-208 in your correspondence. For further information, you may contact class counsel listed below. Please do not contact the defendant or the Judges of the Superior Court.

The members of the class, other than the representative plaintiff or an intervener, cannot be called upon to pay the costs of the class action if the action is dismissed.

A new notice will be published when a final judgment is rendered.