SolarCity Letting Me Down

[dband]

FWIW, I've got a SolarCity lease on my desk as I write this, and, having just reviewed it, I can find no mention of any reimbursement related to equipment failure, either as consequential damages, or under a Force Majeure event as defined in the lease. There may be some recourse to pursue a claim under the performance warranty, but since those things usually have a very low bar, there are probably a lot of kWh in the kitty to burn through before any reimbursement will be possible.

Glad I never went with SolarCity then. That was a big part of the pitch with their consultation.

After looking over the lease they emailed, you are correct, there's no mention of reimbursement related to equipment failure.

That's very disappointing to hear they would provide false information during their consultation.

[k1rod]

Well I am three and a half weeks down now and I still haven't heard anything back from Solar City. I have climbed the ladder of supervisors each time finding someone who promised to "check into it" and call me back only to never hear from them again. With Thanksgiving coming up, I don't have high hopes for having the system repaired this month (November). This has really been an exercise in frustration.

[J.P.M.]

Well I am three and a half weeks down now and I still haven't heard anything back from Solar City. I have climbed the ladder of supervisors each time finding someone who promised to "check into it" and call me back only to never hear from them again. With Thanksgiving coming up, I don't have high hopes for having the system repaired this month (November). This has really been an exercise in frustration.

I read somewhere that nothing can replace persistence. I've found that to be true in most situations. As others have suggested, other paths may help. The BBB being one. State Atty. Gen. or fraud bureaus may be another. Consulting legal counsel is always an option as is arbitration, which may well be part of the contract.

[subdriver97]

Yup, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. You might also post about your negative experience on something like Yelp. I did that regarding a poorly handled garage door repair and within a day had a phone call from the extremely apologetic company owner wanting a chance to make things right.

I've also had strong success voicing complains via company Facebook pages. After being on hold for 15+ minutes at a time with trying to get my washer repaired, a single post got me a callback within the hour.

[k1rod]

Resolved

Well I got a pleasant surprise yesterday. Trent, the excellent SolarCity technician that originally came out to diagnose my system called me up at 11:30 am, said he had my inverter, and that he had a cancellation in his schedule, and that he could be at my house in an hour to do the replacement. So I cut out of work and met Trent at my house. In about 2 hours he had the swap out completed and my system back up and producing power. Trent is an excellent technician (I am an electrical engineer so I know that he knows what he is talking about). I just wish SolarCity's customer service and communication were as good as their field service. Anyway, I am back up and running again! Thanks for all your advice!

[russ]

Glad to hear it worked out! A good service man is everything in electric/electronic stuff!