STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
The solar power industry is booming. Customer complaints are also booming - complaints about the part of the industry that installs solar panels on homes. Prosecutors around this country are investigating. Jeff Brady from NPR's Climate Desk begins our story in Philadelphia.
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JEFF BRADY, BYLINE: Ninety-one-year-old Emanuel Minto is a Jamaican immigrant who proudly flies an American flag outside his home. In the tidy yard, Minto says a year and a half ago, a salesman approached him about a government program to help senior citizens save on their electric bill.
EMANUEL MINTO: Well, everybody want a cheaper electric bill, right? So I said, well, that would be good.
BRADY: But there was no such program. Minto - who, again, is 91 years old - was signed up for a 25-year loan for solar panels. Minto says he never knew there was a contract. A lawsuit filed on his behalf says the salesman created an email address and then forged Minto's signature on an electronic contract.
MINTO: Him sit right here and said, this is your email address, and this is your password.
BRADY: So he set up the email for you.
MINTO: Everything.
BRADY: And when did you see a contract for the solar?
MINTO: I didn't see no contract.
BRADY: How was it signed?
MINTO: I didn't sign anything.
BRADY: The company installed the solar panels, but Minto's attorney, Andy Milz, says a nearly $50,000 loan was secured by a lien on Minto's paid-off home.
ANDY MILZ: I wish I could say it was surprising, but we've seen so much of this.
BRADY: The solar sales company involved didn't show up in court to defend itself. Other companies involved either did not respond to NPR or said they dispute the allegations and wouldn't comment on pending litigation. Online solar forums are filled with similar stories from dissatisfied customers. One-star reviews on the website solarreviews.com increased more than tenfold in the last five years - much faster than the industry's nearly threefold growth rate. State attorneys general also are hearing from customers.
ADAM WELLE: The Minnesota Attorney General's Office, like a lot of AG's offices, has received a large volume of complaints in the last few years.
BRADY: Adam Welle is an assistant attorney general in Minnesota, which is suing four solar lending companies. His case alleges they deceived customers with hidden, up-front fees in exchange for lower interest rates.
WELLE: It's misleading people about the price of the system and misleading people about the price of financing.
BRADY: The finance companies tell NPR they follow the law and dispute the allegations in the Minnesota case. Most solar customers do finance their systems. And these fees called dealer fees can be significant. The solar marketing firm EnergySage found that for the last six months of 2023, fees on the most popular loan averaged 47%.
MICAH GOLD-MARKEL: We never had a dealer fee that high. That would have made me sick. That's unconscionable.
BRADY: Micah Gold-Markel owns the Philadelphia company Solar States, which doesn't use financing with these hidden fees. I met up with him at a warehouse, where he was showing trainees how to use a ladder.
GOLD-MARKEL: A little bit. All right. Cool.
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GOLD-MARKEL: Now you can very slowly start to put it against the building.
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GOLD-MARKEL: Ah, nice.
BRADY: Gold-Markel says most solar business owners earnestly want to promote this clean form of energy.
GOLD-MARKEL: To see these sorts of folks come in who want to grow really fast but are unethical, it hurts. It hurts everyone involved.
BRADY: Some of those fast-growing solar companies have gone bankrupt, enough that Gold-Markel says a growing part of his business is taking over service for systems those bankrupt companies leave behind. To repair the solar industry's reputation, companies like his are speaking out more. The trade group Solar Energy Industries Association also is developing new standards for companies, says president and CEO Abby Hopper.
ABBY HOPPER: We want to make sure that there are no exploitative or unfair sales practices happening in our industry.
BRADY: She says the goal is to make sure customers have the information they need to make a good decision. Hopper says solar is popular, and she wants to keep it that way.
Jeff Brady, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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