Solar Panels Installed but Not Working: Who Is Responsible?

Who is responsible when solar panels are not working?

If your solar panels are not working and the installer is bankrupt or won’t answer, who is responsible depends on what failed and what you signed. On a system you own, defective equipment goes back to its manufacturer under the product warranty, faulty installation becomes a claim against the installer or its bankruptcy estate, and other repairs are generally yours; on a lease or power purchase agreement (PPA), the company that owns the panels generally carries maintenance and repairs, even when a new servicer runs the account. Start with a basic check, write down what you find, and send the repair request in writing to the company that owes it.

This page is for a system that ran and then stopped, or runs badly. If yours never received the utility’s permission to operate, see solar panels installed but never activated.

What should you check first when solar panels stop working?

Run through these before you call anyone, and photograph what you see. Leave the inverter closed, stay off the roof and leave any wiring alone; anything past resetting a breaker is a job for a licensed electrician or solar contractor.

Is the grid down? The California Public Utilities Commission says that “During a power shut-off, most solar systems will automatically power down,” which keeps power off the de-energized grid and protects repair crews. Anti-islanding is the name for that safety shutdown, and SolarEdge says its inverters “are designed to automatically resume operation once the grid is back.” If the outage is over and the system is still off, keep going.

Is a breaker or switch off? Look for a tripped breaker labeled for solar in your main electrical panel, and for any disconnect switch the installer labeled outside. If a breaker trips again after a reset, stop and call an electrician.

What does the inverter say? An inverter is the unit that, in the FTC’s words, converts “solar panel output so it can be used with your home’s electrical network,” and most show a status light or error code. Inverters are the usual suspect: NREL’s study of almost 50,000 systems found that hardware-related issues “were dominated by inverter problems (<0.4%) and unspecified repairs,” and its maintenance guide calls inverter failure “one of the most frequent causes of PV system performance loss.”

What do your bills say? Compare recent utility bills with the same months last year. A sharp jump in the power you buy from the grid, with no matching rise in your usage, points to a system that is off or underperforming.

Is it a slow decline or a stop? Panels lose a little output every year. NREL’s review of measured degradation rates found “a median value of 0.5%/year,” so a small yearly drop is expected and a sudden stop is not. For a system that runs but makes less than promised, see solar panels not producing promised energy.

Is it the system or just the monitoring?

Monitoring apps depend on an internet or cellular link, and they can go dark while the panels still produce. SunStrong, which took over many former SunPower and Sunnova accounts, tells former SunPower customers in its help center that “free cellular connectivity is no longer available for systems that use cellular communication for solar monitoring.” The same help center lists live monitoring in its app at no cost and premium features, such as historical performance data, at $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year, which it says lease customers receive at no cost.

Reconnecting matters for more than convenience. SolarEdge’s current warranty lists, among its conditions, that “Products are continuously connected to the SolarEdge Monitoring platform after their installation,” and Enphase’s says covered products “should be continuously connected to the internet.” Older equipment may carry older warranty versions, so check yours.

Who owes the repair?

Your contract	Equipment failed	Installation failed	Also note
Cash purchase	The manufacturer, under its product warranty; labor is often yours	The installer, or its bankruptcy estate	Repairs no warranty covers are generally yours
Loan	Same as cash	Same as cash; the Holder Rule notice, if your loan has it, lets you raise the claim against the loan holder, capped at what you paid	The lender is usually a separate company and keeps collecting
Lease	The system owner, under the maintenance terms	The system owner	A new servicer may run the account
PPA	The system owner	The system owner	You pay for the energy produced

California’s solar guide is direct about owned systems: “Unless you purchase a maintenance plan or your system comes with one, you will be responsible for any maintenance and repairs.” That can mean “contacting different manufacturers, who could go out of business during the 10- to 20-year component lifecycles.” For leases, Treasury says “The leasing company owns the system and is generally responsible for system maintenance.”

When the installer has failed, check who took over its obligations before you pay anyone for a repair. In the bankruptcy cases reviewed on our warranties page, buyers took on only the obligations their purchase terms listed; the company now using the SunPower name, for example, says it took no interest in systems installed before September 30, 2024. Our page on warranties after a solar company closes sets out what the court orders said for Sunnova, SunPower, Titan Solar Power and Lumio customers, and how to file a manufacturer claim yourself.

How do you find out who services your system now?

Start with the name on your latest bill or bank draft, which may not match your contract. SunStrong tells homeowners to “Look at your original contract or agreement. Which company is listed? That’s the originator for your system,” and its account page sends customers of SunPower, Sunnova, PosiGen and GoodLeap to separate billing portals. For Sunnova accounts its new owner group acquired, Sunnova says SunStrong took over “system monitoring, billing, collections, and customer service.” For SunPower systems installed on or before September 30, 2024, the company now using the SunPower name tells cash and loan customers to contact their lender and lease or PPA customers to contact their financier or SunStrong.

Your installer, lender, loan servicer and warranty provider may be four separate companies, each owing you something different. Write down each one, with contact details, before you send anything.

How should you document a system that stopped working?

The FTC’s warranty advice starts with the same habit: “Save a copy of the warranty.” Build the rest of the file now, while the details are fresh:

• the date the system stopped or dropped, and how you noticed;
• monitoring screenshots, photos of the inverter display and error codes, and the equipment labels with serial numbers;
• utility bills from before and after;
• every written request and reply, plus a call log with dates and names;
• the contract, warranties, loan or lease papers, and the proposal, ads and text messages from the sale.

The sales material matters if a salesperson promised service, monitoring or repairs that the signed documents don’t contain. Our dispute documents checklist covers how to get missing copies.

Do you have to keep paying if the system isn’t working?

Usually yes, while you press the repair, and you should get professional advice before you change any payment. The CFPB’s 2024 report observes that “Some solar loan agreements note that the consumer’s financial obligation does not depend on the system’s performance.” An installer’s bankruptcy does not end the loan either; the Arizona bankruptcy court told Titan Solar Power’s customers that “Many customers are still making payments for their solar panels through a financing company.” If your loan carries the FTC Holder Rule notice, the holder “IS SUBJECT TO ALL CLAIMS AND DEFENSES WHICH THE DEBTOR COULD ASSERT AGAINST THE SELLER,” and recovery “SHALL NOT EXCEED AMOUNTS PAID BY THE DEBTOR HEREUNDER.”

Leases and PPAs read differently. Treasury tells lease shoppers to ask, “What recourse do I have with the company that owns the system to cease payment if it not repaired or replaced in a timely manner?” (Treasury’s wording), so read whether your lease answers that question, and get professional advice before you act on the answer. The CFPB describes a PPA as “paying for energy,” so compare what you are billed with what the system actually produced. Our page on what happens if you stop paying explains the consequences of a missed payment.

What should you do, in order?

1. Inside a cancellation window? Rare once a system has run, but if your contract is recent, check the state table and the deadline tool. A cancellation goes in writing, by the method the contract and the law require, with a copy to the lender the same day.

2. Identify your contract and every company. Your papers show whether this is a cash, loan, lease, PPA or PACE deal. From them and your latest bill, name the installer, each manufacturer, the lender and servicer or the system owner, and any successor.

3. Ask in writing, and complain for free. Send the repair request with your documentation to the company that owes it, and a manufacturer claim for failed equipment. For a system you bought, the FTC says: “If you have a problem with a system you bought, try to resolve it with the company first,” and to report it to the FTC and your state attorney general if you’re not satisfied. For a loan, the CFPB asks, “Have you tried reaching out to the company?” For a lease or PPA, Treasury, the CFPB and the FTC “encourage consumers that believe they have been a victim of unfair or deceptive practices to file a complaint with CFPB, FTC, or their relevant state consumer protection office.” Add your contractor licensing board, and see our complaint guide.

Disclosure: Candid Yak works with Titan Advocacy Group, a solar consumer advocacy firm, and may be paid when readers hire it.

4. If they refuse, get a case review. A failed inverter outside its warranty term is a bad outcome; a lease company that won’t perform the maintenance its contract promises, or a sale that promised service the paperwork never included, is something more. When the company that owes the repair refuses in writing and your documents show a gap between what you were promised and what you signed, a firm that offers a free case review can tell you which it is. Look for one that:

• reviews your contract, warranties and repair correspondence before quoting anything, and points out any free route still open;
• tells you which attorney will handle your file, licensed in your state, so you can look the lawyer up with the state bar;
• states its fee in writing before you pay, including what happens to the fee if the lender or servicer refuses;
• never tells you to stop paying your loan, lease or PPA;
• never promises a result and never claims ties to your installer, lender or servicer.

See solar cancellation companies and hiring a solar attorney.

5. Other routes. A lease or PPA buyout ends the contract on its own terms. A loan can be paid off or replaced with a consolidation loan if the numbers work. The main guide covers every route.

Disclosure: Candid Yak works with Titan Advocacy Group, a solar consumer advocacy firm, and may be paid when readers hire it. This page’s author, Kira Fairbank, is a manager at Vacation Ownership Consultants, a timeshare exit firm.

This is general information, not legal advice. Who owes a repair turns on your contract type, the warranties, and any bankruptcy orders that moved your account, and your state’s law decides what a refusal lets you do. Put those documents in front of an attorney licensed in your state before you send a demand, sign a release, or change any payment.