Rental companies like Hertz estimate how much their cars will be worth when they eventually sell them, and that estimated decline in value is calculated as a cost. If the decline is more than expected, profit falls.

Mr. Scherr said Tesla was less willing than other carmakers to give Hertz volume discounts on replacement parts. “Tesla is new to the game,” he said, suggesting that the electric car company’s relative inexperience in serving rental car companies played a role in that decision.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.

Hertz’s plan is at least a temporary reversal for the company, which in 2021 had announced it would buy 100,000 Teslas as part of a broader effort to electrify its rental fleet.

But the agreement did not set a deadline for Hertz to buy the cars, and the company has purchased only a fraction of that number. Hertz also offers electric vehicles by other manufacturers, including Kia, General Motors, Volkswagen and Polestar.

One potential reason the electric vehicles at Hertz were involved in more accidents, Mr. Scherr said, was that many people renting those cars did not have experience with the technology despite efforts by the company to educate customers. Electric cars accelerate more quickly than gasoline vehicles, and they are heavier. Demand for the vehicles was also less than the company had expected, Mr. Scherr continued.