Ather, TVS, Hero MotoCorp to refund cost of charger to buyers

EV markers had come under the scanner for allegedly mispricing their products to make them eligible for the FAME II subsidy.

Earlier this week, Ola Electric announced that it would refund the cost of the charger to its customers. Now, other EV makers have followed suit.

Ather Energy, TVS and Hero MotoCorp have also been ordered to refund the charger cost to buyers after the government found that chargers were being billed separately, which is a violation of the FAME II guidelines.

According to a media report, Ather Energy will refund Rs 140 crore to 95,000 customers who purchased the 450X up to April 12, 2023. TVS will reimburse Rs 15.61 crore to 87,000 customers who purchased the iQube S between May 2, 2022 and March 2023, while Hero MotoCorp will refund Rs 2.23 crore to 1,100 buyers who have purchased the Vida V1 Plus and V1 Pro.

EV markers had come under the scanner for allegedly mispricing their products to make them eligible for subsidy under the Faster Adoption & Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme. As per the policy, electric 2-wheelers that cost more than Rs 1.50 lakh are not eligible for benefits under the scheme. Also, chargers and proprietary software cannot be sold by a company at an additional cost.

Source: ET Auto