They say that necessity is the mother of invention. For Tesla Sweden, this is gradually becoming true. Faced with the escalating tactics of the IF Metall trade union, the electric car manufacturer has resorted to some rather creative strategies to ensure that it can continue to deliver cars to customers.
As one of its strategies to force Tesla to sign a collective agreement, the union has effectively blocked Tesla from obtaining licence plates for its vehicles. Tesla Sweden has taken the legal route to resolve the issue, but so far the strategy of IF Metall and its allies appears to be working.
As of last week, Tesla Sweden was still missing around 1,000 licence plates for new cars due to be delivered to customers in the country. Fortunately, according to a recent report from MestMotor.se, Tesla Sweden’s legal team appears to have found a fairly effective way to get around IF Metall’s blockade of Tesla licence plates.
The workaround is said to be simple. Tesla reportedly signs a purchase or lease agreement with customers in advance. This transfers ownership of the vehicle from Tesla to the buyer. The customer could then simply order new plates for their vehicles and have them delivered to their home via Postnord. The customers would then bring the plates they have already received when they collect their Teslas.
Tesla Sweden has not commented on the matter, although several customers in Sweden have described the workaround on social media, the publication reported.
While apparently effective, Tesla Sweden’s apparent strategy to circumvent IF Metall’s licence plate blockade is likely to be a temporary solution. As such, it would not be surprising to see the EV maker change its strategy in the coming weeks. At this point, it would appear that Tesla or IF Metall would have to soften their stance if Tesla customers in Sweden are to be spared serious inconvenience. Such a scenario still seems unlikely, at least for now, given the union’s rhetoric and Elon Musk’s comments on the ongoing strike.
