Video and text by TIM
FAULKNER/ecoRI News staff
To watch this video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgVCiFokVzg
Rhode Island’s
residential solar industry has grown dramatically in recent years, bringing
with it some dishonest sales and service practices.
According to state data,
the number of solar installation companies has increased from fewer than six in
2014 to 45 today. State incentives such as the Renewable Energy Fund and the Renewable Energy Growth Program
have triggered more than 3,000 solar installations on homes across Rhode
Island. But there have been growing pains.
At a May 2 House
committee hearing, two local solar installers explained how they have been
called to fix mistakes made by unscrupulous solar companies and to clarify to
consumers why promised financial benefits made by other companies were less
than expected.
“These people have laid
out tens of thousands of dollars and they are not getting what they paid for,”
said Doug Sabetti owner of Newport Solar, based in North Kingstown.
Sabetti said some shady
solar companies are “upselling” systems to homeowners by convincing them to buy
and install extra panels on roofs with poor sun exposure.
EDITOR'S NOTE: SolPower was Charlestown's choice as the contractor for the Solarize Charlestown program. We were among the first to sign up. I met Eric Beecher, pictured in the video above.
I can vouch for SolPower's business practices - from the initial contract and projections for savings, to installation and to getting the right paperwork done to qualify for the sizable federal tax credit and to sell excess solar electricity to National Grid.
The one "deviation" from SolPower's promises compared to our actual experience was that we actually produced a lot MORE electricity than they projected, leading to lower than expected power bills and higher rebate checks from National Grid (last month, it was $73).
Instead of taking 12 years to break even as projected, it looks like we will do that in half the time.
- Will Collette
Some companies have also failed to offer the appropriate incentives because the forms were too complicated to fill out, according to Sabetti. The sales people also didn’t mention possible income tax liabilities that may be triggered by the financial incentive programs.
I can vouch for SolPower's business practices - from the initial contract and projections for savings, to installation and to getting the right paperwork done to qualify for the sizable federal tax credit and to sell excess solar electricity to National Grid.
The one "deviation" from SolPower's promises compared to our actual experience was that we actually produced a lot MORE electricity than they projected, leading to lower than expected power bills and higher rebate checks from National Grid (last month, it was $73).
Instead of taking 12 years to break even as projected, it looks like we will do that in half the time.
- Will Collette
Some companies have also failed to offer the appropriate incentives because the forms were too complicated to fill out, according to Sabetti. The sales people also didn’t mention possible income tax liabilities that may be triggered by the financial incentive programs.
Sabetti and Eric Beecher
of Providence-based Sol Power didn’t name the accused competitors but described
them as “big-box” national companies that don’t offer follow-up service after
they install solar systems.
Beecher said he has been
called by homeowners to remove and reinstall solar arrays because other solar
companies didn’t replace roof shingles before the solar panels went up.
Some companies have
offered inflated promises about the electricity output of their solar panels
and exaggerated savings on electricity bills, then claim tree growth and/or
cloudy weather hurt energy generation when those promises aren’t met, according
to both Beecher and Sabetti.
“When that electricity
production doesn't materialize (the customers) don't have much recourse,”
Sabetti said.
Sabetti and Beecher
endorsed a bill (H5991) that creates a
mandatory disclosure form solar installers must sign to ensure that they
deliver the promised benefits and assurances the roof will last as long as the
solar panels. Failure to meet expectations could result in legal consequences.
The sponsor of the bill,
Rep. Deborah Ruggiero, D-Jamestown, said there have been more than two dozen
complaints made by homeowners who felt the solar company didn’t live up to its
word.
“Some are good. Some are
not-so-good,” Ruggiero said, as she described the influx of new residential
solar installers in Rhode Island.
A four-page draft of the
disclosure, modeled on a Massachusetts form, is being written by the Office of
Energy Resources, the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation, National Grid, and the
residential solar industry. The disclosure must be endorsed by the state Public
Utilities Commission in time for the approval of the 2020 Renewable Energy
Growth feed-in tariff program.
Ruggiero hopes the
disclosure works, otherwise she’ll seek a new law next year that imposes
tougher restrictions on installers.
“We have to do something
because it’s not fair,” she said.
Rep. Joseph McNamara,
D-Cranston, is a co-sponsor of Ruggiero’s bill. In January, McNamara introduced
a bill that creates a residential solar bill of rights. The legislation allows
homeowners to rescind a solar sale or lease agreement prior to installation.
McNamara drafted the
bill (H5133) after he received
complaints about a Salt Lake City-based solar sales company that promised
customers in his district unrealistic savings.
Three senior citizens later
discovered liens against their homes after they couldn’t afford to pay the
monthly expense for their new solar systems, a cost they were promised would be
covered by the savings on their electricity bills.
The dubious solar
company, McNamara said, no longer answers its phone.
“When people invest in
solar energy they should know that the representations they are getting are
truthful,” McNamara said.
Both bills were held for
further study and review. Senate companion bills haven’t been introduced.
