On a conference call, Tesla Motors Inc vice president of business development Diarmuid O'Connell confided that the company could force-close its stores located in New Jersey should the state proceed to pass a proposed amendment to the existing law regarding auto sales. Businessweek said that the automaker recently learned that the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission is mulling over an amendment tha would prohibit manufacturers to get licenses to sell their cars directly in the area. The news agency noted that Tesla Motors does not have franchised retail dealers.
"Clearly, a decision was made rather abruptly and certainly without any consultation with us. There are probably a couple levels of bad faith and surreptitious behavior," O'Connell had said.
In the past year, car sellers in the states of Ohio, New York, Minnesota, Georgia had been seeking to block Tesla Motors for directly peddling its own cars. Dealers in Texas were able to successfully lobby stringent restrictions on the sale of Tesla's own models in the state, with Arizona, Colorado and Virginia imposing limits to the Palo Alto, California-based retail activities.
Tesla Motors said that the agency led by Governor Chris Christie will be deciding on whether the amendment should be done at 2PM in Treston today. Tesla Motors currently has two stores in New Jersey, Businessweek had said.
A spokesman for Christie, Kevin Roberts, said, "Since Tesla first began operating in New Jersey one year ago, it was made clear that the company would need to engage the Legislature on a bill to establish their new direct-sales operations under New Jersey law. This administration does not find it appropriate to unilaterally change the way cars are sold in New Jersey without legislation and Tesla has been aware of this position since the beginning."
O'Connell warned that its people in its New Jersey stores will be out of work should Christie and the commission decide to approve the rule amendment today.
