Tesla forces pace on autonomous-vehicle insurance
Tesla is offering a lifetime insurance and maintenance package to car buyers. Already the majority of Teslas sold in Asia have an insurance product customised to Tesla, which takes into account not only the cars' Autopilot safety features but also maintenance costs. Tesla founder Elon Musk insisted the move is not about disrupting the insurance market. "If we need to we’ll insource it, but I think we’ll find that insurance partners do adjust rates proportionate to the risk of a Tesla." The offering is not yet widely available.
In the self-driving future envisioned by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, car owners might be saying "goodbye" to a whole lot more than steering wheels.

Musk is so sure of the safety features bundled into Tesla vehicles that his company has begun offering some customers a lifetime insurance and maintenance package at the time of purchase.

No more monthly insurance bills. No more unexpected repair costs.

The news was dropped Wednesday in an earnings call, and suggests that Tesla executives believe they are uniquely qualified to change the way new cars are priced and purchased.

"We’ve been doing it quietly," Tesla President of Global Sales and Service Jonathan McNeill explained on the call, "but in Asia in particular where we started this, now the majority of Tesla cars are sold with an insurance product that is customized to Tesla, that takes into account not only the Autopilot safety features but also the maintenance costs of the car."

Elon Musk's serious face. Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

It's important to note that, like so many things in life, this service isn't free. Rather, the cost of lifetime insurance and maintenance is built into the initial purchase price. Even so, that gives customers a straightforward way of knowing how much a new Tesla will actually cost in the long run. And if the Tesla autopilot feature makes the cars safer, as the company has asserted it does, insurance rates may theoretically be less expensive than for a typical non-autonomous vehicle.

It's unclear how much the lifetime insurance and maintenance bundle costs. We reached out to Tesla for clarification, but have yet to hear back.

"It’s our vision in the future that we’ll be able to offer a single price for the car, maintenance and insurance in a really compelling offering for the consumer," added McNeill. "And we’re currently doing that today."

Musk insisted that this move is not about disrupting the insurance market — as long as insurance companies agree to play nice. "If we need to we’ll insource it," he said of the included insurance plan, "but I think we’ll find that insurance partners do adjust rates proportionate to the risk of a Tesla."

No word yet on when this offering will become widely available, but as Tesla has shown time and time again, the company has a habit of following through on bold predictions.

UPDATE: Feb. 23, 2017, 1:32 p.m. PST The top quote in this story was initially attributed to Tesla VP of Global Investor Relations Jeff Evanson. The quote in fact comes from Tesla President of Global Sales and Service Jonathan McNeill. This post has also been updated to note that we reached out to Tesla for clarification on costs.