Tesla Solar is a scam. Once the system stops working, and it will, there is no one to talk to, no one to escalate to and no help from anyone. Oh but the billing will continue. My inverter stopped working and the replacement is five months out - but billing continues. The monitoring system had previously stopped working before that (don't worry no one to get help from on that) so really I've been getting NO SERVICE and wasn't aware of it for much longer that I thought. Either case, no one to escalate to and no one who will pick up the phone. Scam through and through. 0/10 would recommend that you not only steer clear but you tell everyone considering this company to go elsewhere. read more

Installation went fine. Had low output. Tesla claimed all good on their end. So did sc Edison. Tesla came worked on inverter-no difference. Came out again and said 1/4 of panels were not connected. Then had roof leak that winter. They came out 3 times to fix the same problem. Now having another roof leak in a diff area. They cancelled the appointment (fine, stuff happens) and had limited availability on a next visit even though it's raining soon. read more

Tesla are the absolute worst company to work with in solar. I greatly regret choosing them. Look elsewhere if you're considering it! Terrible communication Many mistakes (that they then charged me for) System does not perform to their promised production levels and they won't honor their "guarantee" Run in the other direction! read more

roof leak after solar install. I had my insurance co, house builder and an outside roofing company all write reports stating TESLA did a bad install on the roof. even TESLA sent someone else to fix the leak. He said the same thing. THE ROOF NEEDS TO BE REDONE WITH NEW FELT. I have been playing phone tag with Mellisa from TESLA solar. When something goes wrong TESLA won't call back , they want you to use the app. HORRIBLE SERVICE. Im probably going to have to seek legal advice. In my opinion I would choose another solar company. The worst. Wish me luck. Jay read more

Tesla is by far the worst company we have ever dealt with. We purchased Tesla solar and powerwall 4 months ago because we thought they were a great company with great service and value. Wrong! Now a couple of months later my system has been down for 20+ days and no help in sight. I finally spoke to someone to schedule a service but have me scheduled for July 12. 2+ months to get someone to come out and fix the issue. I also have to continue paying my monthly to Tesla even though my system is not working. I'm paying them and LADWP too. I definitely wouldn't recommend Tesla for anything. read more

Tesla - Solar Installation Near Me - Hawthorne, California

WOW. I am shocked and in loss of words. Worst company I have ever dealt with. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH TESLA SOLAR - YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED, FRUSTRATED AND STRESSED BEYOND BELIEF! I should have looked at reviews before being a "Tesla Fan Boy" and just going with what I thought would be the best customer experience/product. I was about to purchase a Model Y and also waiting for the Cyber truck but after this I can say without a doubt I will not be purchasing anything from TESLA. Why they suck: - No customer service. Literally have been waiting to speak with a manager for days (almost two weeks now) and no response from anyone on the team. - Solar was installed and they left holes in my ceiling. Waiting to see if they will fix it. - The one person I was able to get in contact with even told me himself that Tesla will not be responding to any of my messages and that hes my best hope. Then begins to tell me how I should be appreciative that he is going out of his way to contact me even though he doesnt have too. LOL Are you kidding me? Is this really how tesla operates? I thought I was being pranked.. haha I could keep going but this is a waste of time. I hope my warning saves at least one person time and money. read more

Tesla - Solar Installation Near Me - Hawthorne, California

Tesla Solar has the worst customer service I've ever experienced--quite possibly on par with home warranty customer service. It's that bad. The solar panels have been underproducing, my gateway doesn't work (hasn't worked since I got it-- I've been told numerous times they're going to replace it for over a year now, only to most recently be told they won't), and I have lost hope of getting things fixed. It feels like their customer service agents are specifically taught gaslighting techniques as that appears to have been their primary tactic with me thus far. I will never purchase another Tesla of any sort and have shared my experience with my family and friends. No surprises that my friends who have other Tesla products complain about similar experiences with their customer service. Would not recommend to anyone. read more

If i could give negative stars i would.how can a multi billion company continur to bill and noy replace ypur equipment for 6 months and counting?!?! Im the one doing all the follow ups and they are recently even mis scheduled me for a service call and not an install after i specifically asked for the status of my case. They said it was instock and theyre scheduling me for am install. Guy gets gere and no install and now another month?!?! Stay the efffff away from this place. Also the original contract was so misleading. We were given false info by solarcity (previous company) with one of.their door to door salesman telling us that we coule eventually buy if from a lease which was completely.bogus. not only am i stuck with a long lease of a shitty solar system that hasnt worked in 6 months. Maybe if Elon musk gave a shit about customer service he would do a better job because the operations of their energy side is shit. read more

My new roof was put on by Solar City, which was then bought by Tesla. I had leakage and Tesla did not respond to my Warranty. I had to pay for it myself, and I would never use them again. read more

Bait and switch. They take your deposit and surprise you with massive installing fees exactly 73 hours after you can no longer cancel and get a refund. I should have cancelled when the support rep Michael Hall failed to respond to every single text I sent. Elon Musk, do you really need to take well meaning people's money like this? I will never support your company again and will tell all of my friends and family the same. read more

We believe in Elon 's vision and mission to change the world . Thankfully there is Tesla . We had a model 3 and now a Tesla solar panel on our roof. If you are looking or planning to go solar- look no further and go for Tesla . Tesla solar is the most cost effective solar option there is . Thank you for lowering your price and making it affordable for us. read more

Tesla - Tesla solar review - Solar Installation Near Me - Hawthorne, California

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Tesla solar contractors, damaged our roof they bent every rain gutter around the whole house with their ladders . and of course they deny all of it -watch out you better be there on the job watching every step they do. also, also the enhanced auto pilot $6K option on the car I never got even still to this day. they claim they haven't developed it yet? I will go forward with getting my money back hopefully . Disappointed at Tesla . read more

We have been relocated for 7 months now, paid for by my homeowners insurance, because my 30,400.00 SolarCity purchase caused water damage to my entire home. I spent over a year negotiating the purchase contract and loan (with no escalator). Both have yet to be honored as written. The fortress of customer service urchins are trained to block you from going any higher up better than understanding their own product. Meanwhile my family of 6 is displaced and navigating a legal system via the ROC We cannot begin repairs without compromising the evidence. So until the city finishes their legal process we cannot remove the solar which in turn is keeping us from repairing our home. My advice to anyone that is seeking solar for their home is; you will need to research not only your contract and quality of production, definately and thoroughly find out their track record for how they handle problems that may arise after the sale and how well they honor the contract. I have had to learn the hard way that it does not matter how well your contract is written if you have to spend years proving and enforcing it. Total cost of damages so far is nearing $100,000 this is yet to be acknowledg'd by Tesla/Solarcity and remember we have not yet begun to rebuild! read more

Tesla - Solar Installation Near Me - Hawthorne, California

After only a few years the roof work Tesla did, has caused a leak. in my roof. I am currently 9/15/2020 dealing with them and will keep this post updated because I feel this is going to be another battle. Stay tuned. Tesla never fixed my roof they have to be the worst solar. Company on earth, buyer be wear there all crooks and sloppy work. read more

Everybody wins. If you agree there is no need for a debate regarding climate change, then going solar is clearly the right thing to do. If you've ever been less than satisfied with the DWP, you can say goodbye to them, and begin a relationship with the professional network of people at SolarCity. Our sales representative, Phil Garcia was straight forward and explained everything. He's also generally cool, and with all the questions we've had not only during his presentation in our home, but for weeks that followed, he has always been available and on top of things. The installation team was also very professional with an emphasis on safety. They arrived promptly, began and completed the job on time which is impressive once you begin to understand all that's involved. There are attractive lease options with multiple benefits. Zero start up cost(s) was important to us. We're already fans of leasing things that depreciate. It's structured so you know what it will cost each month. SolarCity monitors and maintains/repairs your system for the entire term, so no surprise repair costs, and no outrageous bills during the summer months just because you need to run your AC. Be aware that you will authorize the DWP to turn the government incentive over to SolarCity, and that any power you generate going back into the grid will not produce a check. Of course you can buy the system if your prefer. While it's important to do your homework, it's unlikely to prepare you for the process. It is long and involved which is why we are so glad to have SolarCity on our side, and actually working for us from day one. If we were dependent on the DWP alone to help facilitate our switch to solar power, it would literally take years. Seriously, the DWP for example will arrive an hour ahead of schedule for one of several inspections, and rather than knock on your door, they'll leave a notice 'no access' that explains what they are going to bill you to reschedule. They'll smile when they say 'bad news about your old meter.' What's bad about installing a new meter that is the proper distance from your gas meter? If you've been a DWP customer, you're likely familiar with their service. SolarCity is customer focused and gets things done. Recently one of SolarCity's major competitors was listed in the Fortune 500. Solar companies are definitely profiting. We want them to. It pushes the clean energy agenda forward and creates jobs. Again, everybody wins. The planet, your wallet and the expansion of clean energy. For those seriously considering solar energy, you may be interested to know that we were turned down by three companies over the last few years because of a large tree on a neighboring property. The tiny portion of our roof briefly shaded in the morning was explained to us in detail as an 'impossibility.' 'Think of Christmas tree lights' they said. 'One bulb burns out, and the whole line blows.' While there is some truth to that, what they were not telling us was that there are actuators that prevent that problem. Finally, there is one thing we did not become aware of until the installation of our system was completed. We wondered if our power would remain on during a blackout, and the answer is SolarCity is in partnership with Tesla if you want a battery back up included with your system. That would have been an automatic yes for us. Maybe we'll add it later. For now, we await the final green light to turn on our system. We were told it takes five to seven weeks give or take. read more

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Update. Have these solar panels for two years , so far so good. They produce a bit less electricity than promised.

Leak again! Must know there brackets suck ! Tesla came out 2 weeks ago & replaced all the brackets!! Leaking again cuz the idiots never fixed my complaint!! Duh roof leak , water coming in my house ! They tarped it last week , must have came off because water again is coming in !! 24 hr service?? Bull shit !! One star to post read more

Tesla - Solar city's work , another bracket broke so Tesla who bought them out (?) installed all new brackets but DIDNOT fix the leak on the roof!! - Solar Installation Near Me - Hawthorne, California

2 Reviews In One! 3/29/2012: When you contact a business three times, complete their profile on their website, and inquire about their services, you would expect someone to respond, right? Once. Twice. Then a third time. Crickets. No response. They had my phone number, my email, I had created a profile. Most likely what happened was since we only have $50/month electricity, they decided we weren't worth contacting. What else could it be when we are offering to throw them money and they won't respond? Then, about 2-3 months afterwards, Solar Energy "Consultant" Aldo Saglietto contacts me saying that they need to "reschedule our appointment". Huh? I never had one. He responded and said, "Oooops. We got you confused with another person." That's embarrassing for Solar City. And it gains them this crappy review. Way to go, Solar City. You'll see if you look at my profile that I usually have rave reviews. But this is just beyond awful. If a company is THIS bad when you are trying to give them money and they are trying to create their best impression, I can't help but wonder how awful they would be when they're actually doing work or making their appointments!!! JUST SAY NO. ~~~~~~~~EDIT (7/22/2013-9/30/2013)~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Against my better judgment, I listen to my cousin and go for it again because he had a positive experience. Rather uneasy, I tell the guy I'm dealing with that I am wary that people didn't bother returning emails and calls previously. I remind him verbally and by email, but he assures me that this is an anomaly and that's not what Solar City does. Regrettably, he's wrong. What does he do? He waits three weeks to respond to my email. Not once. Not twice. At least three times. Wow. Just wow. Doesn't return calls, or if he does, it requires two emails and a phone call or that kind of thing. Seriously? WTF is wrong with your company? This occurs repeatedly, so I call and cancel the whole thing, telling them why. Then I receive a call from the guy weeks, if not months later, complaining that he did all this work, and how could I cancel it? Because....uh...you don't return my calls. Why am I going to give my hard-earned money to a company that doesn't care? And your company doesn't care. They don't care. Even after I tell them why I'm concerned about doing business with them.....they just go ahead and do the same thing again. Is it because we don't really use that much electricity? If so, be honest like other solar companies and say so. Ignoring me this many times gets you this - a public warning to as many people who will read this to not use them. Besides, you want to buy your solar panels, not rent them. GO SOMEWHERE ELSE WHERE PEOPLE ACTUALLY WANT YOUR MONEY AND BUSINESS. P.S. The first time, one of the people I dealt with was Aldo Saglietto. Maybe someone else. Who knows? They never returned any emails or calls. The second time, the people I dealt with were Kristopher Wallin and Kyle Cunningham. I am naming these people as a public service. Avoid at all costs. Avoid Solar City at all costs. read more

I had three different Solar Companies bid on a solar system for my home. I awarded the business to SolarCity. I felt they were giving me straight answers and were willing to answer my questions. One of the things that impressed me about Solarcity was the level of prefessionalism and the level of service. Everyone seemed approachable, genuine and sincere. I didn't run into any language issues or had concerns with leaving the contractors to work on the project without me being there. The project came in as it was bid and I was pleased with the resuslts. I am now green and don't worry about how much the electricity bill is going to be. read more

Has anyone took legal action against this company. I'm looking into it, This has been the worst company to deal with. Customer Service was bad, Installation was bad, Sales Rep lied about everything that I thought I would be saving money. Please let me know. Thank You read more

Just had billing tell me there was nothing I could do to have credit on account with monthly 20 year contract even though my inverter was shut off by tech and 1 month off line. They bait and switch at Tesla all the time now. When I installed 5 years ago with Solar City... the job was perfect. Dan M. was in charge and he got the job done. Now its a mess. Poor communication,no customer service,and now they just collect your monthly fee and offer no continuing services for that contract. Awful. Recently had another property done by Sunrun and they were absolutely incredible. read more

SolarCity is by far the worst company that I have ever dealt with. When we bought our new home we were told we were all getting solar and that it would be through Solar City. Being first time home buyers we didn't know anything about different solar companies so we decided to go along with it, not like we really had a choice. We came to see the construction of our house and we met with Allison at the model home. We discussed what we were going to be getting and then signed documents agreeing to everything. Fast forward three months and it is time for us to move in. We are excited to start this new journey but it slowly went sour. We were told that the solar panels would not be able to be turned on for a couple of months. There was always some excuse, LADWP is not on top of things, we need more information, or they simply would ignore our emails. I can't begin to tell you how many emails I wrote. Just to get updates and simple answers. Finally when we had approval to get everything turned on nothing worked. I emailed Allison and also got in touch with corporate. This was 6 months later and still nothing was working. They told us they were going to send out a tech and he called to confirm a Monday appointment. Monday rolled around and the guy never showed up. He finally showed up the next day and let us know that our solar panels were not installed properly and that is why there was an issue. He said he could fix it but then we were told that he would have to come back because he needed to get into the attic. After what felt like an eternity we finally had the solar panels up and running....or so we thought. We kept having an issue with the connection and we were told that we were missing a piece that monitored how much energy we were using. So once again we had to wait for them to send us something that they should have sent in the beginning. About a week ago we noticed that we were still having some issues. I decided to call again and figure out what is going on. I called the company and was told that my box kept losing connection I was asked to locate the antenna and figure out what was going on. When I went to look for the antenna I notied it was missing. I told the man on the phone and he had the audacity to say are you sure? I described what I was looking at and he goes oh ya its missing. So once again we are with out a critical piece of our equipment. We are still waiting for it to arrive. I would tell anyone that is thinking about going with Solar City look else where. They are far from helpful and in all honesty they make the whole process unbearable. read more

The person that came to our home was unprepared. He didn't per call and frankly I thought they forgot. But he showed up 1 hour early, good thing I was home. And when I commented on it I got a "I hear you would like MORE contact, I'll keep that in mind." All he did was a poor sales pitch without ANY information...just talk vs giving me any data when I had already decided on solar. I never did receive any data with which to make a decision. Vs their competitor LA Solar who came prepared with a mockup of my roof, data, costs and expected production in a 1 hour visit we had everything we needed to make a decision. read more

I wrote a review of SolarCty last year and I have no idea what the hell happened to it. Whatever. I did my homework and I chose SolarCity because they were forefront in doing large installations, have a contract with PG&E in the Bay Area and as of today are partnered with Google. They were great to work with, completely professional, and Kevin DeMattio, our consultant, was very cool. Again, I did my homework and I thought the 20 year lease option was the way to go, especially since we signed up last year in February when the incentives were higher and the lease includes insurance and replacement. We got a 5.4KW system and paid $6500 up front (and they gave $500 cash back) plus we spent around $3000 for the panel upgrade including trenching and cement work (ours was higher because we live in an area with methane gas). So basically we paid approx $9000 and since the panels were fired up last October we've made $891 worth of electricity. You do the math. Here's the bill this month we got from LADWP, which includes power, water, trash and sewer: Your Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) bill is now available for online viewing and payment. Service Address: 12600 XXXX XX, LOS ANGELES, CA 90066 Credit Balance - DO NOT PAY $-30.23 AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! read more

We met with Solar City sale person Vanessa yesterday. While she was a very sweet lady and very patient with our clashing schedules she should not have been selling solar systems. She came to our house with no "OSHA Certification yet" that precluded her from going onto our roof. This is absolutely the most basic part of a solar review and she was trying to tell us that she had all of her dimensions from the ground. What a line of garbage that was. This roof has a number of special details that cannot be judged from the ground and she was not able to even see those details. Her second problem is that she did not have the proper sun pathway calculating equipment to get a real examination of the sun on the roof. Having a simple compass is not enough in this competitive industry. Lastly Vanessa attempts to sell us a 1.9 kWh system when we need a minimum of a 6 kWh (preferably a 7.5 kWh) to get us close to a zero bill system. These attempts to sell homeowners an inexpensive system that is only peak shaving is not the right way to sell systems that are less than fully efficient. She insisted that we could not install a system that large on our roof due to the roof configuration. She obviously needs a bit more training as we have had two other contractors tell us that we can and the drawings to code to prove those assertions. This was a complete waste of both her time and ours. We will not be using Solar City; if they expect continued growth they must have better trained sales persons. The practice of selling peak shaving systems is rampant and they are not in the best interest of the homeowner. The solar company simply tries to sell a lower priced system to calm the fears of the client and get a sale. Full sized systems are more expensive but the long term benefits are much more advantageous to the homeowner. These peak shaving systems do offset energy costs but not enough to make a complete efficiency impact. We are highly disappointed in this attempt to use Solar City for our impending solar project. read more

These bad reviews are accurate!! We needed solar to cover 100% of our power needs or we can't discuss moving forward and have a large flat roof and multiple buildings so I said this is easily accomplished as the architect designed out house with solar in mind. After repeatedly saying they fully understood, they pitched me something that would only cover 87% of my power. They said if you want 100% or over, the only way to know for sure is to sign a full commitment for $54,000 then AND ONLY THEN can they send out a tech because (direct quote) "frankly we don't want out time wasted". She said this multiple times. (Another direct quote) ... "Solar city's policy is you need to commit to spending the full $54,000 without knowing if we can actually solve your 100% power needs, but we can't be bothered to come by and even take a look at your house until then, again we don't want out time wasted. Maybe you can get out of the agreement if we can't hit that number, I don't know, thats not up for me to decide."(end quote). Unreal ... As a Tesla Shareholder I now see what all the fuss was about. read more

Very bad service!! To anyone thinking about using these company don't it they will tell you everything is great working order and give you 2 thumbs up !! To keep moving forward next they will send a third party electrical company will will tell you that ur homes electrical wiring needs to be changed ant a cost of $12000 dollars .. It's all a scam DO NOT TRUST SOLARCITY !!! read more

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Unbelievably unprofessional. I setup an appointment for one of their representatives, Gregory, to come out and give me an estimate for a 3-4kw system on my home. I have already had 3 other installers give me estimates and they were all professional and courteous, going through all the details of solar systems with me. I needed to have somebody come either early in the morning or late in the evening due to my work schedule so I setup an 8AM appointment. I think I must have offended Gregory because he first called trying to change it to 8:30 which I told him wouldn't work due to my schedule. He did show up at 8AM and took a brief look at the house. He then tried to push solar leasing on me which I told him I wasn't interested in. I had already had this conversation with him on the phone previously. He wouldn't let it go so anyways I asked him just to move on in the interests of time. We went inside and he pulled up my roof on his computer to draw out the system and then continued to press me about leasing where I tried to tell him again that I was not interested. He then wanted me to give him the details of my energy usage modelling before he would start to give me a quote. We just moved into the house a few months ago so did not have a complete energy history but I had calculated our needs based on our actual usage and was looking at a 3-4kw system. This was mostly for comparisons sake as the 3 other quotes I received were all for 3-4kw systems. What came next was absolutely shocking. This representative, Gregory, sitting in my home had the nerve to pick a fight with me and tell me how I was being an ***hole and I don't know any better about solar electricity and quite frankly I'm an idiot for even considering it - all because I didn't want to indulge his leasing discussion nor his tactics to persuade me into buying a larger system by discussing it only in terms of the energy usage on a monthly basis. I was just completely shocked when he actually started yelling at me. I told him to leave my house and get off my property and I was beginning to get concerned that I would have to call the police. I don't know what was wrong with this guy, but his conduct was downright frightening. I would strongly urge anyone to avoid looking at SolarCity for their solar installation as this dangerous lack of professionalism is completely unmatched by any contractor I have ever done business with. read more

There are no negative stars, so one will do. This is pretty much a scam, if not out of your pocket, it is a wash for them with DWP. Notice how they NEVER will even discuss being Off-grid. Of course not. They want you leasing OLD technology for 20 years! You know how much advancement this tech gets in just 3 years? A lot, and efficiency in these panels get better and better. They now have parabolic mirror systems that outdo these panels, take less space, and are far more cost effective..Not even in the same league. The sales rep was not interested in the customers needs, just blabbed about his charts. I wanted to know what panles they use, and it took them a week to get back with 4 different panel types and no lock in of which you get. They were cheap low efficeiency with one model that compared to a Sanyo panel, Get out of here. Waist of time and they hook you in with the city rebate. Some made off well with this, and have lower bills, but that was when they first started the program, and nothing has been like it yet. The battery cells they use are also outdated. If you want to go solar, have a indi pro design and install based on the battery and panels you spec out. In a few years, there will be soalr cells on a roll sheet. Many other ways to hone FREEEEEEEE energy. The SUN is FREEE people. Solar panels are inflated in price to keep this from you to make $. Simple as that. If you pay the capture of the sun energy, and a way to store and feed your panel, you are done. It is rather simple. read more

Be careful with this company. They are trying to sell you a Lease for mediocre panels. My issue is that I went out for quotes and the Salesman was professional, but DID NOT listen to me. I told him twice in one conversation that LEASE was not an option, but he continued to try and sell me a LEASED system. The next conversation he went on with really trying to sell me a LEASED system and I waited patiently, but when he finally gave me a moment, I said "Lease is not an option for me. I am interested in purchasing the system." He gave me little to no information about purchasing the system. I also asked for the type of panels they use BECAUSE IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE! This information was no where in their proposal. Do your research -some panels are in the spectrum of being similar, but there are higher grade panels and lower grade panels. Then he went on to talk about Elon Musk. I guess they were told to brag about his accomplishments of launching the Tesla and a space-ship. THIS REALLY TURNED ME OFF. I really don't care about Elon. I care about Solar and if you paid attention to your customers and not your Sales pitch, then you might be more successful with your customers. read more

Avoid Tesla Solar Products. They promise you the moon before purchasing. Once they are on your roof say goodbye to customer support. They use bait and switch tactics and the energy output is substandard. I am an extremely unhappy customer. read more

SolarCity installed solar panels for our property, and our experience with them was absolutely fantastic. They were professional from beginning to end and the whole process was turnkey. They did the site visit, design, installation, meeting with DWP, application for the various rebates and tax credits ... all I did was write a check and sign where they told me to sign. It was so easy!! I've worked with multiple contractors and subcontractors during a 2 year remodel (which was quite an adventure in itself), and I would rate most of those guys 1-2 stars ... maybe my AV guy gets 4 stars because he was quite good. But SolarCity gets 5 because they are amazing. They gave us email updates at every milestone along with updated timelines. I could track my installation progress online. They were so on top of things that I often felt like I was sometimes the one holding them up. The installers were all friendly, professional, and eager-to-please. Also, any time I had a question, I could e-mail or phone Dara or Mike and get a response in less than 24 hours (and usually with 1-2 hours). The best thing about this system is their Solar Guard program where you can track how much power the panels are generating online. It has cool graphs of how many KW I generate per hour, and it's so interesting that I check my Solar Guard website several times a day! It's been a week and I've already offset 64 lbs of CO2. All in all, things were extremely smooth-sailing working with this company. I barely had to think about anything and voila, before I knew it, I was generating solar energy! read more

Before going with SolarCity I checked out a few other companies and did my homework about leasing vs purchasing so I understood what I was getting into. My sales rep (Brock) was up front and able to answer all my questions. It wasn't a hard sell since I knew what I wanted and they were able to provide it. I am fortunate to have plenty of south-facing roof space so I was able to get a rather large (10kw) system. Installation was smooth, SolarCity even asked if they could install 3 weeks earlier than scheduled. They showed up on time, were very organized and clean and paid a lot of attention to safety (a big concern for me as we had 2 small children at home during the install). Getting the system actually turned on was annoying to say the least. My SolarCity sales rep had warned me that LADWP was quite behind and we ended up waiting almost 3 months between the installation and actually turning the system on. Through the process, Solar City's customer service was fantastic. The whole process and dealing with LADWP was a ton of paperwork and back and forth but thankfully they made it simple. Whenever I got a call or email from LADWP, SolarCity either was already on top of it or took care of it immediately. I was really impressed at how quickly I could get to a real live person on the phone and was able to get answers quickly without feeling like I was talking to someone reading from a script (unlike the cable company etc). When they couldn't answer a question immediately, they actually called back when they could. If you're considering solar, be prepared for a long process. It took us 7 months from signing the contract to turning on the system. It's complicated. It's annoying at times but as long as you know what to expect, it's worthwhile. We're saving $50+ per month off our electric bill (the difference between the lower bill and the solar lease payment) even in the winter. Yes, panels and technology will improve and SolarCity is profiting (gasp) on the deal but I am getting a solar system that meets my needs, saves me money and I don't have to worry about maintaining the system. It seems to me most negative reviewers either had terrible sales reps (we must've gotten lucky) or didn't understand the business model and overreacted. Of course if you have the cash up front to buy the system and install it yourself/independently you'll always profit in the long run. If not, SolarCity is a great company to go with. read more

"Go Solar, it's free" They say. Oh no it isn't. Don't be fooled. My consultation with SolarCity went fairly well until the end. First of all, it was an inflating lease. That is ludicrous. Did we learn nothing from the housing crisis? The biggest red flag was that they didn't tell me what my after-solar bill was to the utility (you will still get some of your electricity from the grid). How am I supposed to compare the costs if i don't know how much the total cost is for my electricity? Also, after wading through their LENGTHY and CONFUSING contract, I noticed a couple more disturbing things: First, their quote does not include sales tax. What? Turns out it was going to be about $16 more a month than they quoted me. Second, it costs and extra $15 a month to not be on auto-pay. That was enough for me. I turned them out and continued shopping. i recommend you do too. read more

My experience was troublesome with SolarCity. It took nearly six months to get the solar panels installed and approved last year. Apart from that, it seemed like they made mistakes each step of the way in the process. First of all, we were originally told they would install a system that more than met all of our electrical needs. It was supposed to produce over 10,000 KwH . After we entered into the agreement with SolarCity, and after they designed this system that they promised us, they told us that they couldn't actually install that size system because of something to do with our roof. They then scaled back the system to less than half of the size they told us originally. That left us with a considerably smaller system that no longer would cover all of our needs. We were told we had to sign an amended agreement. When I asked why they didn't know about my roof's design right from the start - since someone actually came out here to measure everything - they didn't know the reason why. We had already agreed to let them install so we went forward with the process. When they came to install the system, they had a different location in their plans for the invertor (a large gray metal ugly box), which powers up the system. Instead of putting it in our garage, which we expected, they wanted to install it in the narrowest area of our yard - on a walkway that measures only 3 feet wide. It would have jutted out into that walkway and made it impossible to roll my trash can down the walkway. I had to stop the installation at that point and wait until they could get someone on the phone to reconfigure where to install the invertor. It was really stressful and unprofessional for them to send their installation crew with this change without getting my approval verbally. (They claimed they sent it via email - hidden in a very long contract). After finally working with them on another location for the invertor and getting it installed last October, we were quite surprised when we got a delayed bill from LADWP for $569.00! When I called Solar City, they checked their readings and found that the invertor had been defective all along and had not been producing electricity the way it should have. When I asked them if they would pay my bill to DWP, I got delays, "I have to check with my manager" excuses, and then an initial agreement to pay me about $120.00! After arguing with them about it being THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to monitor their own equipment, which we are paying to lease, they finally agreed to pay me $230.00!!! Now we have to pay the remaining $335.00 to LADWP for power that our system didn't produce because their equipment was faulty. I did tell them that it would be better PR for them to take responsibility for the remaining $335.00 then have me be dissatisfied, because I'm obviously not going to refer them any business now - but they chose to take the hard line on this anyway. Go figure. On the positive side, they are always very pleasant on the phone - lots of "I'm sorry's" and "I apologize for our mistakes" but in the long-run, it kind of feels like I'm dealing with a 10-year old who is sorry after they do something that they are going to be punished for. They are sorry that I'm angry, sorry that I'm calling to complain, but not sorry enough to take responsibility for their mistake in a way that makes the customer feel good about them. I DO advocate solar power. I think it's a good thing - but you might want to look elsewhere. read more

Very messed up. Can't deliver on schedule. They really don't know how to deal with the building department or the DWP. Failed to get paperwork right after many tries, so ten days after they finally installed (and 5 months after I ordered the installation), they now claim to need 18 more weeks to get a permit to activate. It's classic Bait and switch because they installed without telling me the needed paperwork wasn't done, then when I asked them to pull the system they said i would have to pay for the whole thing. As of now, my system still isn't working. Don't use them. read more

My girlfriend and I had a "consultation" from a local rep here in LA. We had a decent "discussion" with the rep, but it was obvious according to him that our roof was too oddly shaped to situate enough cells to make it viable for them to work with us. They Google Earth everyone before they come over so they can be prepared ahead of time. We also use very little electricity every month, so our bill was already tier 1 and didn't really make sense. That said, the rep was said he would email us "the numbers" so we could make a decision. He never responded and upon realizing later, he never got our email info. This was slightly unprofessional. Even if we weren't capable of working with them now, we could have been in the future, but lack of follow up is not acceptable and is actually quite rude as it shows your true colors. Secondly, sales pitch power-points make me want to throw up. It is straight manipulation of information for one purpose. As we sat through it, we had too many questions and turned his bait and hook into a hot potato. His rebuttals were decent, but we aren't idiots who need to be manipulated into another lease or monthly payment with no option to buy worth a damn. Our Salseman ("consultant") was pushing the lease model really hard and made purchasing seem idiotic. Didn't work on us. Thirdly, solar is supposed to be a method to partially decentralize the power grid and provide FREE energy for all. Solar is supposed to provide energy independence with an actual ROI (return on investment). The fact that a company has coopted this movement in order to trap Americans into more immoral dealings with large financial institutions is plain evil. I am not an idiot and I will not stand for this kind of greedy crap. Why should I pay a tad less or equal for solar from them when the energy source is FREE. The bill should be ten times less. They're raking it in and using solar to rape people. I don't care how green the frosting is. How expensive are the cells? That should be the question. The energy is free. 20 years at over $120 a month equals $28,800 excluding tax and other hidden fees. You could buy now for probably half that. Fourthly (is that a word?), This company is backed by large banks like Goldman Sachs (haven't they pillaged enough from Americans?) which should be an immediate warning sign that it's all about money for them nt empowering you or caressing mother nature; the only green they care about is in the form of locked in payments for 20 frikkin years. Eff Solar City. They're a wolf in sheep's clothing. Lastly, I would wait a few years, save up or hunt around for a local installer with reasonable purchase plans and warranties. The tech is getting better and better and the prices for solar are getting cheaper. Locking into 20 year lease payments may be lucrative from their pitch, but I am sure that better options are out there and you won't be in dealings with shady financial vacuums. This is my opinion, solar leasing may make sense for others, but it's who you deal with and how. From the lack of response to the large banks pushing this model, I can't recommend Solar City for smaller residential homes. read more

I did not go to a specific address for my service, but I see no option to review Tesla.com, so I am doing that here. My overall experience with Tesla Solar (tesla.com) was very poor, with significant problems/delays every step of the process. Communication was bad across many different Telsa staff (with three positive exceptions). I placed my initial order August 28. It took almost 5 months to get permission to turn on my system. During those months, Tesla representatives made multiple and repeated errors, which I believe is largely because their business model appears to rely on departmental silos, making it difficult for customers (or anyone at Tesla) to communicate effectively regarding the whole job. I often received redundant and contradictory messages, including several emails after going operational asking if I still wished to pursue purchasing solar from Tesla. If I had not asked many questions, my solar system would not have accomplished my goal (whole home back-up). It took months for me just to get a correct contract (which involved adding panels and another Power Wall, contrary to Tesla's original recommendation). The panels were generally installed well, but the electricians failed to include grounding rods, did not seal mounting screws on the conduit on my roof, tore shingles under one of the mounting "pucks" for the panels, and left before identifying the circuits in the new panel box. If I had not inspected their work, I would not have known these things until my roof started leaking. I submitted detailed constructive comments in response to Tesla's requests for internal reviews, describing the litany of problems I had. I noted that--whereas I knew I had no legal grounds--it would seem to be good business practice to be provided some discount for all my trouble. Two Tesla reps eventually contacted me in turn and thanked me for my detailed documents. They both said that my documentation would be very helpful to Tesla's efforts to improve, implying that they agreed such problems should not happen. An investigation was even launched to assess my claims, but in the end, I was told that I had no legal rights (which I had already previously acknowledged). For all the problems (they admitted to 31 days of delays, but there were more), Tesla said I would receive a "Customer Satisfaction" payment of....drum roll please....$100! Does anyone think that this would *increase* customer satisfaction? In short, this $100 was equivalent to returning $4.00 to a person who had paid $1000.00. In fairness, my solar is working well (two months so far), but I dread needing future customer service, although the local person (vs. corporate) has been responsive. I have always thought highly of the Tesla products, but I cannot think of a worse experience regarding customer service than what Tesla provided. Their $100 check is perhaps the most insulting gesture I have experienced in a business transaction. Someone at Tesla needs to consult a dictionary for the definition of "satisfaction." read more

So went shopping around for at least a year!!! Not going to get into all the details but we looked allot,,,Solar City was great from day 1,our sales person didn't even have to come to the house to close the deal. It was a no pressure investment, mind you every other company was non-stop bugging me. So we signed the contract for 6.44Kwh system 15 year lease , needing 30 to 33 panels with our roof only fitting 28, so they upgraded us to 230w panels,but then needed to upgrade the electrical panel from a 110 to a 220. Just a side note they offered to do the upgraded but I did it myself. The plans were all generated and accepted on-line. Almost all communication was handled via email which makes everything fast, I liked that allot. The system is great, it was installed very cleanly and fast. The production of the system is way above the 822kwh a month est.the quote stated !!!! All in all Solar System has been wonderful... read more

This is a company that is feeling growing pains. They are doing a massive amount of installs and are hiring people left and right to keep up with demand. Our salesman was great at selling the system, but never followed up with anything like he said he would (long story, but he now no longer works for the company due to a history of problems). There are a lot of steps in order to get an installation date (hoa approval, permits, paperwork/contracts, etc.). There are different departments that handle each step along the way, and there was a lack of communication between them. We were told the installation would be a 1 day job with 5-7 installers. Come installation day, 3 guys show up...? Another long story short, the installation was 3 full days. I will say those installers were extremely pleasant and very hard working. They also did a *very* clean installation. Our electric bill used to average around $200-250/month. We paid $13,000 up front to lease our system for 20 years which comes to $54/month (13,000/240). Our Edison bill has been between $20-40 since we've had the solar installed. So the bottom line is our overall bill went from $200-250/month to $74-94/month. At the same time, we did have a whole house fan installed and I swapped out all of our incandescent lights to led, so the lower bill wasn't entirely due to the solar system (but obviously is mostly because of it). At the end of the day, we were happy with the result, it was just a little rocky getting to that point. Would I recommend them? Ya...but I wouldn't tell you not to look around to other solar companies either. read more