Rooftop Solar Fraud Signals A Wider Collapse – Part I
The rooftop solar industry might be in freefall and on the way out, but the damage of bad performance and long-term contracts endures
The New York Times article, “New York Sues Solar Panel Firm, Saying It Bilked Hundreds of Customers” (January 29, 2026), explains how the city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection is seeking almost $20 million in restitution and penalties from ‘home improvement contractor’ Radiant Solar.
In all, “300 victims of the same company, Radiant Solar, which left a trail of damaged homes, large debts and broken promises across the city,” the article reported:
“It was able to do so in part because home solar energy systems are complicated, expensive things — they often cost around $50,000 — typically involving layers of financing and tax incentives that leave many consumers confused.
“The city says that in addition to ripping off homeowners, Radiant undermined the efforts of the city and state governments to shift to cleaner energy.”
CEO William James Bushell joins Sunnova’s John Berger and others in the business Hall of Shame.
“According to the lawsuit, filed with the city’s Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings, Radiant’s solar panel systems often failed to deliver the energy savings it had advertised and sometimes did not work at all.
“The company padded loans with hefty and undisclosed kickbacks to lenders, failed to see projects through to approval by the city and did not file paperwork for customers to receive tax credits, the suit says. It also ran a bogus sweepstakes for a new Tesla, according to the suit.
“Radiant repeatedly signed people up for loans without their consent, the city claims, saddling them with monthly payments of hundreds of dollars for years. ‘A more blatant form of deception is hard to imagine,’ the lawsuit says.”
A Wide Problem
The subsidy-infested rooftop solar industry is all about making a highly uneconomic enterprise economic through complicated long-term leasing contracts. Numerous leading rooftop solar firms are bankrupt.
Part II tomorrow will update the mess created by the demise of Sunnova, the largest company in this solar space.
Part III on Friday will share a social media exchange with a rooftop solar apologist, where the weakest argument is mistakenly made rather than remaining silent.
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Header image: The Planner Magazine
Greg Spinolae
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The numerous solar industry frauds in many countries do NOT negate the FACT that harnessing solar power is a common-sense part of any energy source portfolio.
Irrespective of the CURRENT inefficiencies (or even the non-sensical drivel about panels being less “green” than other energy sources): the REALITY is that solar technology is, like most technologies, advancing at an incredible rate.
Already; modern panels are providing DEMONSTRABLY COST-EFFICIENT power even in low-solar countries like the UK.
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Seriously
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Here, where the sun is plentiful ( until they start with their planes, dispersing whatever they do creating murky cloud cover from clear blue sky), the problems for solar customers abound. Something to do with electricity spikes that damage components and reduce ability to function. The power company won’t take responsibility, the installer won’t take responsibility because caused by the power company….the bame game that leaves customers open to badly functioning systems and expensive repairs. Check those contracts carefully and educate yourself on all components and how they work…
I also read where there are now mobil panels….that you can take with you when you move…but not widely available as the individual state has to ‘approve’ their use🙄
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Mike J
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There are cases that make sense for residents, especially when the monthly electric bill is something like $400/ month. Connecting to the grid to supply electricity won’t help though.
When I was in college (1980’s) I was told that about 80% of the electricity generated was used by industry and only 20% was for residential. Presumably that hasn’t changed much
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