Tesla might charge you up $25,000 if you use its latest feature

Tesla has added a new "Emergency Drive Away" feature that lets a driver shift into Drive and pull away from a Supercharger while still plugged in, meant for situations like the shooting that happened at a Supercharger station in Twin Falls, Idaho earlier this year. Tesla has been upfront that using it will damage both the car and the charger, and now says that damage can run up to $25,000, depending on the charger. The car also needs a mandatory service visit afterward, and Tesla hasn't said what that costs. There's also cleanup involved, since a coolant called glycol leaks out of the cable when it's forcibly disconnected.

This matters mainly for EV owners who charge at Superchargers, not general homeowners, but it's worth knowing if you or someone in your household drives a Tesla. Tesla hasn't said who foots the bill for the damage — the driver, their insurance, or Tesla itself. That's a real gap, since $25,000 is more than the minimum property-damage insurance many states require (Idaho's minimum is $15,000, New York's is $10,000, Pennsylvania's is $5,000). Tesla has also said there are unspecified "penalties" for misusing the feature, without explaining what counts as misuse or how it would enforce that. Since every Supercharger session is tied to a Tesla account with a payment method already on file, the company has an easy way to charge owners directly if it decides to.