SAN ANTONIO — A man knocks on your door and wants to tell you about an exciting new opportunity with solar panels. They tell you, if you sign a contract for solar panels, you won't pay an electric bill for half the day. They tell you there is a $15,000 tax credit and the government will help pay for the project. They tell you it's what everyone will be doing in the future.
Ask them to leave the information and you will look it over. Don't sign anything! That deal could end up costing you thousands of dollars more than you anticipated and there's often no guarantee the panels actually get installed.
"What they are really trying to get is your signature on a note," Consumer Protection Attorney Bill Clanton said. "They are not only selling the solar panels, or the instillation of solar panels, but they are also selling a note (or loan)."
The solar panel installation company that came to your door likely can't afford to buy the panels for your home themselves. Instead, they tell you to sign up with another company that will provide the loan.
Again, don't sign anything.
One 78-year-old woman KENS 5 spoke to signed a contract on her phone for solar panels but said she never saw the Federal Truth in Lending Act Disclosure which is required by law. When that woman asked for a paper copy of the contract, and spoke to KENS 5, she realized she had signed a loan for more than $59,000 with a finance charge of more than $49,000. After signing that email, she now owed the lending company more than $109,000 without realizing it.
KENS 5 also spoke to Isabel Hernandez earlier this year. Hernandez signed an agreement for a loan around $63,000, but she didn't realize the financing costs raised the total she would pay to more than $80,000. Even worse, the contractor that was supposed to do the job went bankrupt before finishing.
GoodLeap, the loan company, still wanted their money. But to GoodLeap's credit, the company later made sure another contractor would come out to finish the job.
Yet another man contacted KENS 5 after the contractor he hired installed solar panels but didn't connect them to his home. KENS 5 found out that contractor went out of business.
Both attorney Bill Clanton and Better Business Bureau spokesman Jason Meza told KENS 5 consumers need research a contractor before they sign for any service.
"The best way to stay ahead of that is if you are researching the company yourself, checking profiles and reviews. You can check with BBB.org to start with," Meza said.
Meza also told KENS 5 buyers need to ask a contractor who is manufacturing the solar panels, who is responsible for the warrantee on the panels, and how long the contractor has been in the solar business. Unfortunately, Meza said, consumers also need to make sure the representative is truly with the company they claim to represent.
"There are some posers out there... imposters who say 'I'm with this company and they are actually not. You call the company and they are not even on the grid. So make sure you know," Meza said.
This doesn't mean every person selling solar panel contracts door to door can't be trusted but it does fall on the consumer to read everything in the contract before they sign anything.
"It would be a good idea to get an offer from them and then compare that to two other solar panel companies. Maybe to someone who is not a door-to-door salesman," Clanton said.
Clanton said you will likely get a better financing deal for the solar panels a local bank that you already do business with. Never sign any loan without reviewing the truth in lending document first.
The worst issues consumers are seeing are contractors going out of business or unexpected loan financing costs. Still, Meza said the BBB gets plenty of other complaints about companies and you need to read reviews before hiring anyone.
"We've seen numerous complaints from customers alleging a variety of issues. Not just installation but panel performance issues, bad customer service, inaccurate information and then the rebates get confusing," Meza said. "A range of issues can go wrong."
Finally, Meza said customers need to know that solar panel systems don't necessarily erase you electric bill and the sales pitches can often be exaggerated.
"The common misconception is that your electrical costs will be eliminated or greatly reduced. But it's not that simple and in some cases it's not true at all," Meza said.