Chances are you’ve seen pop-up ads on social media for home solar power. Plenty of Georgians wish they’d done more research before making such an expensive commitment.
DOUGLASVILLE, Ga – A hidden camera FOX 5 I-Team investigation takes the shine off some big promises made to Georgia homeowners about solar power.
With rising energy prices, you may be paying closer attention to those ubiquitous ads on social media:
“The government will cover the cost to install solar.”
“Get paid to go solar!”
“Reduce or even eliminate your electric bill by using solar energy.”
“I never would have thought somebody would just lie to you like that.” Amie and Nathan Tatro say their sales rep painted an unrealistic picture of home solar.
Amie and Nathan Tatro of Lafayette saw the same ads. So they signed a contract with Power Home Solar — now Pink Energy — to outfit their home with solar panels, a deal that cost $91,000 with monthly installments over 25 years.
“It’s not turned out to be what was promised,” Amie admitted. “Almost everything he said turned out not to be true.”
Like how they would be able to sell extra solar power back to their utility, thus giving them a negative electric bill.
But that hasn’t happened. And their North Georgia EMC bills have barely budged.
“If I had known all this, I never would have made this decision,” said Amie. “I would have just stayed with my regular old power company.”
When his solar company failed to pull a building permit, Rod Colver was left with a system that not only didn’t work, he still got monthly bills from the finance company.
Rod Colver of Douglasville agreed to pay Solar Titan USA $43,000 to outfit his home, with the promise to give him backup power and reduce his electric bill.
“It was supposed to go down 80-90%,” he remembered.
We’ll never know. According to a letter from the Douglas County building inspector, Solar Titan USA failed to pull a building permit to do the work.
Without that permit, Colver, 69, can’t hook up the system to the grid.
“It’s a worthless system,” he complained. “It’s never going to be running. And they want me to pay …….
Source: https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/hidden-cameras-reveal-dark-side-of-solar-power