Lease and PPA
When the leasing company won't answer
The company that owns your system is responsible for fixing it, and often owes you for lost power. When calls and app messages go nowhere, these steps usually get an answer.
Checked November 12, 2026
1. Make sure you're asking the right company
The company that sold or installed the system may not be the one that owns or services it now. Your latest bill names who you pay; that's the company responsible. Many SunPower and Sunnova systems, for example, are now serviced by SunStrong Management. See when the installer has gone out of business.
2. Keep a record
Write down every call and message: the date, who you spoke to and the case number. Screenshot the monitoring app showing the problem (zero production, panels offline) with the date visible. Check the system so you can say how far below normal it is.
3. Put it in writing, to the contract's address
Most agreements have a Notices section saying where formal notices must go. Send a short letter there by certified mail with a return receipt, and by email if the contract allows it. Say what's wrong, since when, which part of the contract applies (repairs, the production guarantee), what you want and by when.
A letter you can adapt:
Re: Request for repair, agreement [number], [address]
My solar system has [made no power / made far less than expected] since [date]; screenshots are attached. Under the maintenance and repair section of our agreement, please repair it. Please also confirm how the shortfall will be handled under the performance guarantee. I have contacted you on [dates] (case [number]) without a resolution. Please reply in writing within 15 days with a repair date.
4. Use the production guarantee
If the system made less than the contract promises, the company may owe you money for the lost power. Check what you're owed and claim it in writing. A company that has to pay for downtime has a reason to fix it.
5. Ask for payment relief, but don't just stop paying
When systems sat broken after recent bankruptcies, the new servicer said it was willing to give deferrals and extensions, and let some customers defer payments until their systems worked again. Ask for that in writing. Stopping payments on your own can put you in default under the contract, even when the company is the one failing.
6. Escalate
- Your state attorney general's consumer protection office: file a complaint online. Several attorneys general have acted on solar complaints.
- Your state's contractor licensing board, for problems with the installation itself (in California, the CSLB). Look it up on your state's page.
- Your state utility commission, in states where it takes solar complaints: in Nevada, the PUCN investigates complaints about solar companies and passes them to the right agency.
- The CFPB, if you have a solar loan: it sends complaints to the lender and asks for a written response.
- The FTC and the Better Business Bureau: neither resolves individual cases, but complaints are recorded and companies often respond.
7. If it's still stuck
Check the contract for an arbitration clause and a dispute process, which may set the next step. Small claims court can handle a refund for a production shortfall in many states. For larger amounts, or if you're thinking of stopping payments, talk to a consumer lawyer first.
More for solar owners
- Is my solar system working?Check a year, a month or the lifetime total against what your system should make.
- Production guarantee checkLease or PPA: see whether the system fell short of the guarantee and what you're owed.
- How to read a California true-up billThe once-a-year solar bill from PG&E, SCE or SDG&E, line by line.
- Selling a house with solarOwned, financed or leased: UCC-1 filings, lease transfers and buyouts.
- Replacing a roof with solar on itRemoving and reinstalling the panels: cost, who does it, and warranties.
- When the installer has gone out of businessWhat still works, who you pay now, and who can fix it.
- Lease and PPA terms by companyEscalators, transfers and buyouts at Sunrun, Tesla, SunStrong and others.
- Solar company bankruptcy trackerWho services SunPower, Sunnova, PosiGen and other failed companies' contracts now.
- Reminders: a spring check and upcoming deadlinesAdd them to your calendar. Nothing is sent to us.
Sources: Bloomberg Law: solar bankruptcies leave homeowners in limbo; CBS New York: SunPower customers waiting for repairs; North Carolina Attorney General: lenders asked to suspend payments for Pink Energy customers; Public Utilities Commission of Nevada: complaints about solar installation companies; CFPB: submit a complaint; FTC: report fraud; SunPower: lease performance guarantee FAQ.
General information, not legal or financial advice. Your contract and your utility's current rules decide.