With more than 200 sunny days, the Valley seems a natural place for homeowners wanting to install solar panels.
"I just wanted to be able to run electricity without paying APS costs," Tim Carson says.
Tim hired Jet Solar in Tempe and he took out a $71,000 loan to pay off the big project.
It's a lot of money, but Tim says it's worth it since he'll be getting thousands in government rebates.
He says the large number of solar panels should cover energy costs for his big property and he thinks it will produce even more energy than he needs.
"We'd be selling power back to APS," Tim says.
The panels were installed in May but the system can't be connected until Jet Solar replaces an electric panel and sets up an appointment for inspection.
Tim thought it would be just in time to cover those huge summer bills he'd face.
That didn't happen.
In late May, when Tim hadn't heard from Jet Solar, he texted them asking "any idea when we will have solar?"
He says he did not get an answer.
He texted again in June and finally, an appointment was set for late July.
When that meeting time finally came, Tim says Jet Solar didn't show up for it.
County inspector notes say "no one here" and "no panel upgrade yet."
That means no working solar.
Another appointment was set.
But again, Tim says Jet Solar wasn't there in time for the APS and County Inspector appointment.
"They don't return messages, they don't return phone calls," he says.
So, Tim continues to pay those high summer APS bills and now, he's also stuck paying a $200+ monthly loan payment for a system never connected.
Tim's lender, Dividend Finance, sent a letter saying "we have been informed by your contractor" the system has "been installed."
Based on that, they say they "disbursed payment to your contractor" and loan obligations begin.
"We're paying $500, thereabouts, and not getting any benefit from the solar," Tim says.
When Jet Solar didn't reply to us, we went to their Tempe office.
I asked why the lender says Jet Solar told them the system was complete but the owner would not answer our questions.
After Tim got the letter, says he contacted Dividend Finance but got nowhere.
We asked the company why they would release $71,000 of Tim's money without talking to Tim.
Dividend Finance responded quickly.
In an email, they say: "Again, thank you for bringing the situation to our attention. We reached out to Jet Solar for an update on this project and it is our understanding that they will be in touch with the homeowner and will offer remediation. In addition, the installer is currently working with the utility company to get the system operational. Great customer service is highly important to us, and we are glad the installer is remediating the situation."
Dividend Finance did not answer why they released the money on a system that isn't working.
In a follow-up email, they only said: "It's our understanding that the installer will be making things right for the homeowner."
While Tim's system is still not connected, he did get a check.
Jet Solar sent him a check for $1,156 to cover loan payments made on a non-working system and they set up a new appointment to finally get that system connected.
We'll let you know if that happens.
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