$80,000 bill for unfinished rooftop solar power system exposes pitfall for consumers

Lopsie Schwartz was looking for ways to lower her energy bill when the solar panel salesman knocked on her door in Northridge. Already a believer in green power, she didn’t take much convincing.

But instead of paying less, Schwartz is now on the hook for an $80,746 loan on a rooftop solar system left undone after the contractor abandoned the job. That doesn’t include the destruction of her Spanish tile roof caused by workers and the damage to her family’s credit score for refusing to make payments on the unfinished system.

“It’s caused so much stress, it’s affected our health … we are afraid for our future,” said Schwartz, adding that she and her husband, Andrew, might have to sell their $1.5 million house on Halsted Street to cover the debt to the bank.

“We can’t get a loan to fix anything because our credit is so bad,” she said. Lopsie, 53, is a computer artist for films and television, and Andrew, 58, is a middle school science teacher.

Others in same predicament

The Schwartzes’ predicament has been replayed over the past few years — with the same finance companies — at homes throughout the country, from La Mirada to North Carolina.

In complaint after complaint, solar customers allege they were overcharged for systems that either underperformed or were left undone by contractors. Meanwhile, the banks who financed the solar systems released full payment to the contractors for incomplete jobs.

“Homeowners can find themselves in quite a mess if they aren’t wary,” said Woodland Hills attorney Ryan Snyder, who is representing the Schwartzes.

Enticing tax credit

Lopsie Schwartz’s problems began in May 2022 when the salesman for Entron Holding Inc., doing business as Enerpower and Energon, showed up on her doorstep, selling solar energy systems. At the time, the federal government was giving a 26% tax credit to homeowners who installed the system, on top of various California state incentives.

Schwartz said she took the salesman’s contact information, did some research, got some estimates from other companies, and decided to go with the Calabasas-based Entron, which was incorporated in 2019 and run by Chief Executive Officer Brandon C. Pattillo.

Pattillo worked with Sunlight Financial to coordinate the Schwartzes’ loan. Sunlight, based in New York, connects customers and home improvement contractors with lenders, in this case Addition Financial Credit Union of Lake Mary, Florida.

Within days after the contracts were signed, workers were taking measurements on Schwartz’s roof, while solar panels showed up in boxes on her driveway.

Schwartz grew concerned, however, when the workers damaged the roof. And then they walked off the job altogether, leaving half the solar panels in her yard.

‘F’ rating

It wasn’t the first time Entron and its companies have been accused of not completing a job.

Energon, an arm of Entron, had an “F” rating and 19 complaints on the Better Business Bureau website for solar power systems that didn’t work, were not activated or did not deliver the promised energy savings.

Additionally, an accusation filed in February by the California Contractors State License Board alleged Entron abandoned construction projects, failed to pay for materials and violated building laws at five properties around Southern California. Pending the results of the state proceedings, Entron could lose its license, which appears to have already expired.

The state complaint said Entron failed to deliver on systems for homes in La Mirada, Los Angeles, Altadena and Calabasas in 2021 and 2022, but payment was still released by Sunlight Financial.

“It seems there have been many people screwed by Mr. Pattillo and Entron,” said attorney Snyder.

Local victims on the hook

Among the properties listed in the state complaint is a home on Talbot Drive in La Mirada. Entron was hired in November 2022 to provide a new shingle roof and solar system for $41,243, but workers abandoned the job on the same day that the project began. The costs to repair the roof: $4,320, according to the state. The supplier, OneSource Distribution, also slapped a $10,580 lien on the house because Entron failed to pay for the materials, which the homeowner ended up covering.

Workers also left unfinished a $30,076 job on 43rd Street in Los Angeles.

Three other projects — a $69,943 system on Schuykill Drive in Calabasas, a $34,345 project on Colman Street in Altadena and a $33,812 system on Cantaloupe Avenue in Los Angeles — also were not finished. But Entron submitted the jobs as completed to Sunlight Financial and was paid, according to the state accusation.

Entron also sent salespeople door to door even though they were not registered with the state, the accusation said.

The contractors board would not comment on the pending case against Entron.

Solar project complaints common

Complaints about solar contractors are not unusual. The contractors board received 2,142 complaints related to solar systems in fiscal 2022-23 out of a total of 18,175 overall complaints.

Sunlight Financial also has come under fire across the nation, according to allegations in federal lawsuits.

In Uniontown, Ohio, Tonya Davis said in a 2022 lawsuit she was charged $59,999 for a solar system that, according to U.S. Department of Energy standards, should have cost half that much. Despite claims of damage and substandard workmanship, Davis alleged she was still being billed for the financing setup through Sunlight. The contractor, Power Home Solar, which is unrelated to Entron, also was named in the lawsuit, which was dismissed in court.

Sunlight, Addition Financial Credit Union and Power Home Solar also were named in a 2023 class-action lawsuit with 89 plaintiffs from Virginia, North Carolina and other states who accused the companies of deceptive trade practices, collecting hidden fees and misrepresenting the systems’ effectiveness. That suit was dismissed for procedural reasons.

And in March 2024, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Sunlight and three other solar-lending companies for allegedly deceiving customers into taking out more than 5,000 loans based on false promises of low-interest credit. Ellison also alleged the companies charged hidden fees.

A news release said a six-month state investigation found that customers were charged up to 54% more than if they had paid in cash or obtained their own loans.

“The lenders I sued … seriously misled consumers by promising cheap credit for solar installation, only to charge huge upfront fees that consumers didn’t know about,” Ellison said in the release.

Finance company: Don’t blame us

Brett Shockley, Sunlight’s head of litigation, would not comment on pending litigation or individual cases, but said, in general, the firm can’t be blamed if contractors go out of business. Sunlight works with about 1,000 contractors nationwide and attempts to vet them thoroughly, he said.

“Contractors … undergo a rigorous review process that checks for financial stability, customer service history, and compliance with local regulations, and they are subject to ongoing review and monitoring,” Shockley said in an emailed statement.

“Sunlight also has processes in place to ensure home improvement projects reach specific milestones before loan proceeds are disbursed to the contractor,” he added. “Despite these controls, there have been instances where contractors go out of business before completing a project. In those situations, we work directly with impacted customers to identify appropriate solutions.”

Sunlight filed for bankruptcy in October 2023, but emerged with a new group of owners.

Who’s liable?

Facing a huge bill for his nonworking system, Andrew Schwartz initially sued Brandon and Vanessa Pattillo, Sunlight and Addition, but dropped everyone but Addition from the litigation. Lopsie Schwartz said complaints were dismissed against Brandon Pattillo because he couldn’t be found and Vanessa Pattillo, an officer with the company, because she declared bankruptcy.

Brandon Pattillo could not be reached for comment and Vanessa Pattillo did not return multiple messages left on her voicemail.

Lopsie Schwartz said Sunlight also was dismissed from the lawsuit because the company had filed for bankruptcy protection. She added that Sunlight offered to provide other contractors to finish the job, but each one of them had bad reviews.

The Schwartzes are negotiating with Addition to try to come to an agreement on the outstanding loan, their attorney said.

“The most concerning and mind-boggling part of this is, why is the lender trying to collect payment from Lopsie?” Snyder said. “I haven’t been able to get a meaningful response.”

He said liability should rest with the people who released the funds on an unfinished project. The Schwartzes’ contract agreement calls for disputes to be handled in arbitration, and Addition is threatening to invoke that provision.

Attorneys for Addition Financial Credit Union did not return multiple requests for comment.

Andrew Pizor, a senior attorney for the National Consumer Law Center in Boston, said the Federal Trade Commission requires contracts to include the provision that the banks can’t collect on unfinished work.

“It’s been the law for decades. Banks don’t like it,” Pizor said. “The lender was lied to, but it’s not the consumer’s fault in this case. The bank shouldn’t be enforcing the loan against them. I think they have a good case.”

Jenifer Bosco, another attorney for the law center, said it is not unusual for solar power installers to go out of business or be accused of shoddy work.

“Definitely, we’re hearing of more and more incidences of people having all kinds of problems with rooftop solar installers,” Bosco said. “It’s something consumers are seeing around the country.”