Rivian has launched a referral program, allowing owners and purchasers to gain discounted gear or free charging through use of their Rivian referral code – or, with enough referrals, even an “almost”-free Rivian vehicle.

If there’s one thing about EV owners, is that owning an EV tends to turn you into an advocate for them. The experience is just so much better than driving on gas, and you want to share that with your friends.

This was particularly apparent in the early days, when Tesla owners became the biggest advocates for the company, and many recognized that they had “sold” several vehicles to friends or neighbors with their constant positive talk about their EVs.

As a result, several asked for some sort of recognition from the company for their sales efforts. Tesla instituted a “referral program,” a method for Tesla owners to gain benefits when they convince others to buy a Tesla. The program has been available on-and-off over the years, with various incentives, and Tesla just brought it back.

Now, Rivian is making their own referral program, and it works pretty similarly to how the Tesla program has over the years.

Rivian creates “Rivian Rewards”

Rivian is calling the program “Rivian Rewards.” All US-based Rivian owners qualify, and will have a referral link they can find in the new “rewards” section of their Rivian account.

The way it works is, when someone uses an owner’s Rivian Referral code to purchase a vehicle from Rivian’s “R1 Shop,” its online listings of in-stock vehicles available for delivery now, that owner will receive their choice of:

• 750 points that can be redeemed in Gear Shop or R1 Shop (1 point equals 1 dollar in credit)
• 6 months of charging at Rivian Adventure Network sites (up to a lifetime limit of three years)

These rewards also apply to the purchaser, not just the owner, so if you buy your car through a referral link then you’ll get your own 750 gear points and/or 6 months of free RAN charging.

In addition, Rivian says it plans to have a “special Rivian Adventure Weekend” at some point next year, to which it will invite the first 100 owners that make 25 qualifying referrals.

Rivian has quite an extensive “gear shop” with not just Rivian-branded merchandise like shirts and caps, but lots of vehicle accessories that are useful in the types of adventure situations that Rivian is known for. For example, this three-person rooftop tent will set you back $2,800… or about 4 referrals.

But perhaps more interestingly than that, the points can also be used in Rivian’s R1 Shop, which is used for purchasing new vehicles.

That’s gonna take a few more than 4 referrals, but the points can also be applied as a discount on a new car, which could be a nice little chunk of change for those who are able to get a lot of referrals. Rivian says that you can “almost!” buy a Rivian entirely with points – but that they can’t be used on vehicle deposits, custom configurations, reservations, or purchases outside the R1 shop.

Tesla did something similar allowing large discounts on the (upcoming?) next-gen Roadster, but it got a little out of hand. Perhaps as a result of this lesson, Rivian says that the 750 point reward is valid until the end of this year, but that point rewards may change after that. Also, points last 2 years before expiring.

But it also says that it plans to examine the program as it goes, and potentially expand it so that owners can earn and spend points in other ways as they come up with new ideas.

We could imagine more events like the “Rivian Adventure Weekend” might be popular with owners, so maybe something that would end up in being an option in the future.

Head on over to Rivian’s site for an FAQ about the program or the full legal Terms & Conditions if you want to find out more.

Electrek’s Take

These programs are pretty neat and can certainly be lucrative for some owners who have a lot of well-off friends or are otherwise able to get a lot of referrals. For most owners, though, it’s just going to be a nice little bonus for spending time out of their day to be “the EV guy” among their friend group and helping people out with their EV questions.

That said, the one thing I always felt was unfortunate about the Tesla referral program is that it spoiled some of the goodwill associated with word-of-mouth advertising.

EV owners will tell their friends to buy an EV regardless of if they’re being compensated for it or not, because we recognize they’re just great. When those recommendations come with no compensation at all, everyone can understand that they are honest recommendations. However, adding compensation into the equation makes it feel like maybe there are other reasons behind the recommendation beyond our simple enthusiasm for electric mobility, which just cheapens the recommendation a little.

But on the other hand, we are still doing all this word-of-mouth work that ends up going to the company’s benefit, and that’s surely reducing their sales costs, so the compensation is fair from that perspective. I just don’t want people to think that I’m recommending an EV because I’m getting paid for it, because I have and do recommend them regardless of if any money comes my way (because no matter what, cleaner air and happier drivers come my way when there are more EVs around, and that’s a good thing).

All that said, if our coverage of Rivian has helped inform you about the brand, feel free to use our Rivian referral code to get 6 months of free charging or 750 points with your purchase.

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