False Promises in the Residential Solar Power Industry

Welcome to Hofer Hagan LLP’s first blog post about the residential solar power industry. We plan to use this space to talk about what we’ve learned while helping consumers seek relief from bad deals with residential solar installers. By doing so, we hope to educate existing solar customers on their rights and to provide those considering going solar tools to make an educated decision.

If you’re struggling with a hefty loan payment for a solar panel system that doesn’t produce anywhere near the amount of electricity you were promised and that doesn’t result in anywhere near the savings you were told to expect, we may be able to help, even if the installer is now out of business. Contact us here.

But first, a brief introduction. My name is Michelle Alyea. I’m a lifelong resident of Indiana. And I’ve been an attorney since 2012. Time spent in law school defending clients from questionable debt collection practices inspired my interest in consumer protection, and it has been the focus of most of my legal career ever since. That career has included battling debt collectors at a firm in Chicago and representing Indiana consumers in a wide variety of cases at the Indiana Attorney General Office’s Consumer Protection Division. I joined Hofer Hagan LLP in May of 2025 and have dedicated most of my time at the firm working on matters related to residential solar panel systems.

In that time, I’ve spent numerous hours learning about the residential solar energy industry—including the technology, the terminology, business practices, relevant law, and more¬—all to make myself a better advocate for my clients.

And in that time, I’ve worked with clients dealing with the fallout of deceptive sales practices, shenanigans by lenders, and poor installation. For today’s blog, I’ll focus on some of the deceptive sales practices encountered by our clients and many other consumers who have purchased residential solar power systems.

It’s important to note that not all solar installers engage in the kind of deceptive conduct I’m about to describe. And it’s also important to know that while there’s a lot of helpful information online from consumers who were misled by solar installers, a lot of that information might not apply to your circumstances. And unfortunately, a lot of it includes outright bad advice. So it is important that your situation be evaluated based on the facts of your specific situation by someone with experience in this area.

The most common complaints we hear are about false promises made by salesmen, usually involving the savings available from and costs related to solar panel systems. Solar installers understand that those costs are critical to potential customers, most of whom are motivated—in whole or in part—by a desire to save money on their electric bills.

To figure out whether a solar panel system will save you money in the short term, you have to compare what your total costs would be if you went solar with what they’d be if you continued to buy electricity solely from the grid. Importantly, on the solar costs side of the equation, you have not only the cost of your loan, but also the cost of any electricity you still have to buy from your utility company.

And that’s where some solar salesman try to game that equation. Specifically, some installers promise that the solar system they design will leave the customer with no utility bill or at most a connection charge, leading the customer to believe their only expense will be their loan payment. So the customer believes that as long as their loan payment is less than their average utility bill, they’ll save money.

But all too often, those sorts of promises are lies. The systems designed have nowhere near the capacity to produce the amount of electricity the customer will use going forward. And with sophisticated software capable of doing all the math for them, the salesman know their promises are lies.

In fact, for reasons I’ll go more deeply into in a later blog post, almost everyone will still have to use electricity from the grid—even if their solar panels are designed to produce as much electricity as they use! And in Indiana, it’s nearly impossible to sell enough excess electricity back to the grid to make up for those costs.

So not only are those customers left paying for electricity from the grid, but they now have an added loan payment. And combined, the customer is left paying more than if they had just kept buying electricity solely from the grid.

So if you’re looking to go solar, and a salesman promises you no more electric bills, DO NOT GIVE INTO THE PRESSUE TO SIGN. Take your time and do more homework. Ask for a copy of the proposal available from their design software. Often that proposal will provide a detailed comparison of your costs if you go solar with your costs if you don’t. Take your time and study it carefully, away from the pressure of the salesman.

But even those reports can be manipulated. So do the math yourself if you can. And get quotes from multiple installers. Also, talk to your utility company. Many already have excellent resources on their websites about how to avoid solar scams. While it can be overwhelming, it’s important to educate yourself as much as you can.

And if you’ve already had solar panels installed and find yourself paying more now than you would have without the panels despite being promised otherwise, contact Hofer Hagan for an evaluation of your situation.