Ford electric vehicle certification program encounters dealer resistance: lack of flexibility and high fees

IT House News on December 4th, according to Teslarati, Ford is now facing resistance from many state dealers to its electric vehicle sales plan.

Previously, Ford’s revamp of its electric vehicle sales model required dealer certification and investment in infrastructure. But now, Ford’s dealers are resisting the company’s relevant regulations. Many dealers say that Ford’s regulations are inflexible and require high upfront costs. Some dealers even plan to resort to law.

IT Home understands that Ford’s electric vehicle certification program has two main requirements; sell electric vehicles at a fixed price, and invest $500,000 to $1.2 million in electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Depending on how much a dealer chooses to invest, they’ll get a corresponding number of EVs to sell. If dealers choose not to certify, they won’t be eligible to sell Ford’s electric vehicles.

Ford has faced apparent dealer resistance in Connecticut, where both the dealers’ association and a senator representing the state have criticized the company, saying they may take legal action, according to a report from CT News Junky and a report from Ford Authority. action. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Ford may have violated its franchise agreement and may need to be investigated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Dealers have mostly protested Ford’s requirement that dealers pay high upfront fees to get a certain number of EVs. Many dealers felt that the inflexibility of the system and the need to pay such a high fee regardless of the size of the dealership could make it unaffordable for smaller dealers.

Connecticut isn’t the only region where Ford has faced pushback, with dealers in as many as three states displaying similar protests.

Ford CEO Jim Farley said the new strategy is an effort to aggressively drive dealer acceptance of electric vehicles and improve the company’s sales system to compete with direct-to-consumer brands like Tesla and Rivian. The most obvious improvement comes from the fixed-price agreement, which promises to end dealer markups.

Judging by Ford’s recent announcement, the certification program will continue to exist without further deadline extensions. However, Ford will allow dealers a second chance at certification in 2027, though it’s unclear what the terms of the program will be.