Chevy Bolt $6,000 Rebate Has Conditions: You Can’t Sue Over Battery Fires

Photo: GM (via Jalopnik)

General Motors (GM) resumed production of the Chevy Bolt electric vehicle (EV) in June, after the automaker faced recalls of every Bolt EV ever made due to significant battery fire risks.

According to Jalopnik, Chevy is offering up to $6,000 in refunds to customers who defer the right to sue over the automaker’s ongoing battery fire risks.

If you remember, these refunds are for Chevy customers that purchased the Bolt prior to a recent price drop. 

The rebate is only available to customers who waive their suing rights, and one customer who initially reported the tip to Jalopnik said they only received about $5,400 after signing the release form to gain access to the rebate.

The customer provided photos of the VIN and verification web pages for claiming the rebate, which involves a lengthy release agreement in which customers must give up their right to sue.

GM’s agreement details, “By nonetheless agreeing to this Release, I—both on my own behalf and on behalf of my heirs, agents, servants, beneficiaries, legal representatives, assigns, wards, executors, successors, and administrators—forever waive and release all claims, damages, or causes of action, either known or unknown, regardless of the legal or equitable theory, that I may have now or in the future arising out of or in any way relating to my Bolt vehicle(s), the battery defect, or the battery recalls.”

Upon resuming production in June, GM dropped the price of the Chevy Bolt EV by around 18 percent, despite entering into a landscape of increasing inflation and financial concerns.

The total cost of the recall amounted to roughly $2 billion, which LG Energy agreed to pay since it had built the EV’s batteries.