What started as a dream purchase quickly turned into a nightmare for Daniel Boycott, an Illinois man who bought a used 2022 Tesla Model 3 only to discover that his car had been banned from the company’s Supercharger network. According to CBS News, Boycott bought the car from a used car dealership believing it had a clean title. But when he tried to charge it at several Supercharger stations, nothing worked. The system repeatedly rejected his vehicle, and that’s when he learned the truth: Tesla had flagged the car as unsafe for fast charging.
Tesla determined that the Model 3 had previously been in an accident and was repaired outside of its approved service network. Even though the car looked fine, the company marked it as a “salvaged” or “unsupported” vehicle, automatically blocking it from accessing the Supercharger network. Tesla’s reasoning is that damaged battery packs or poor repairs could pose safety risks when connected to high-voltage chargers. For Boycott, this meant one of Tesla’s biggest selling points – fast, reliable long-distance charging – was suddenly gone.
The dealership that sold him the car claims it was never officially listed as a salvage vehicle and that it passed all state title checks. Boycott says he relied on that information, along with a clean Carfax report, before finalizing the purchase. It wasn’t until later that he discovered Tesla’s internal system had a separate flag that prevented the car from being charged at its network.
Tesla offers an option for owners of banned vehicles to have their cars inspected and recertified, but the process can cost thousands of dollars and isn’t guaranteed to restore Supercharger access. That puts buyers like Boycott in a tough position – pay a steep fee or live with limited charging options. As The New York Post noted, other Tesla owners have reported similar experiences, suggesting this might not be an isolated case.
The story highlights a growing problem in the used EV market, where buyers can’t easily verify whether their vehicles are fully supported by the manufacturer. Tesla’s control over its charging network and software systems means that one company decision can instantly change how functional a used car really is. For Boycott, the lesson was clear: a good deal on a Tesla might not be such a deal if it can’t plug into the system that makes owning one worth it.
