Just a couple of days back, Rivian announced a price increase in its R1T and R1S models, something that earned a massive backlash from people who had already reserved their preferred model.

After many reservation holders expressed their disappointment, with some even canceling orders, Rivian has backtracked, with a letter of apology to all, and promises to earn the trust of its consumers back.

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The Price Increase In The Rivian Models

The 2022 Rivian R1T all-electric pickup truck.
Via: Rivian

Rivian has garnered a decent reputation as an EV maker over the years, solidified as it launched the first all-electric pickup to hit the US market, even before Tesla’s Cybertruck. In November last year, its Launch Edition reservation holders received emails about the deliveries of their much-awaited EV pickup truck with two-month windows, raising their excitement levels.

All was good till a couple of days ago, when Rivian broke the news that there was a price increase in the offing that disheartened both its R1T and R1S customers. The prices for these quad-motor novelties went up by about 17% for the R1T Pickup and 20% for the R1S SUV.

Rivian mentioned that the rising cost of the components and materials is to blame for the unexpected increase in prices, shocking the reservation holders. Rivian was asking them to shell out up to $20,000 on already reserved models, so they felt this was a breach of trust.

CEO of Rivian, Robert "RJ" Scaringe, mentioned this in a letter, “The costs of the components and materials that go into building our vehicles have risen considerably. Everything from semiconductors to sheet metal to seats has become more expensive and with this, we have seen average new vehicle pricing across the U.S. rise more than 30% since 2018.”

Related: A Sneak Peek Inside Rivian, The Company That's Challenging Tesla

Backtrack, With A Formal Apology

2022 Rivian R1S All-Electric SUV
Via: Rivian

Seeing the massive backlash from reservation holders, Rivian backpedaled, with a formal apology saying that it wrongly included the reservation holders and broke their trust in Rivian.

Said Scaringe, “For anyone with a Rivian preorder as of the March 1 pricing announcement, your original configured price will be honored. If you canceled your preorder on or after March 1 and would like to reinstate it, we will restore your original configuration, pricing, and delivery timing.”

However, the new post-Mar 1 2022 orders will attract this across-the-board price increase because, as Scaringe puts it, “growth will only be possible with your support and continued feedback.”

Source: BusinessWire