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Tesla can now sell cars in its...A deal was finally struck between Tesla and its home state Michigan. The electric car giant, Tesla can now finally sell its cars directly in Michigan. Previously,residents of Michigan had to travel to the neighboring states to buy a Tesla. The same was the case during the servicing of the vehicle.
The Michigan attorney general’s office recently announced that it had finally reached an agreement with Tesla to dismiss the lawsuit. Tesla was denied a dealership license by the state in 2016 and hence Tesla filed a lawsuit. The state law of Michigan forces automakers to work with dealers to sell their vehicles.
The deal is not that straight-forward or simple, though. In order to get around the language of law, cars sold in the state will have to come with out-of-state titles. Also, a process of transferring the title becomes mandatory if customers in Michigan want their cars to be titled in their home state.
Dan Crane, a professor at the University of Michigan said that “What happened here is I think that the Michigan attorney general realized that going through this trial would be embarrassing for the state and hence they decided to settle in a way that lets Tesla do what it wants to do, but gives the appearance of complying with Michigan law”.
Further, this announcement could put pressure on the other states such as Connecticut and Texas, that have barred car companies to sell directly to the consumers.