Solar company fined $220K over bad installations, lies to customers in Wichita area
A solar power sales and installation company has been ordered to pay $220,977 in restitution, fines and other costs for violating a state law designed to protect consumers, the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office said Friday.
Sedgwick County District Judge Faith Johnson ordered the default judgment against Tennessee-based Design 1 Group LLC on April 15.
Among allegations outlined in a news release from the DA’s Office were that Design 1 Group LLC:
- didn’t have a license when it contracted for services
- made “false representations” about issuing permits
- lied about coordinating and scheduling inspections
- lied about rebates
- didn’t install customers’ solar power systems correctly
- didn’t install the equipment Evergy requires to connect solar power systems to the electrical grid
- didn’t tell customers how the position of their solar panels would affect their energy savings
- and failed to tell customers that they had a right to cancel their contract within three days
The DA’s Office, in the news release, characterized the company’s interactions with customers as “unconscionable and deceptive.”
Design 1 Group LLC has been ordered to pay $106,780 in restitution; $110,000 in civil penalties; $197 in court costs and $4,000 in investigative fees, according to the DA’s Office and court records.
“The court also enjoined Design 1 Group LLC from engaging in all business in Kansas unless properly licensed and only after obtaining all necessary permits,” the news release says.
Of the restitution, $41,340 is earmarked for a Clearwater customer who was promised a solar panel system would reduce his energy bills by 50-75%, was told “plenty of sunshine” would hit the panels if they were installed on the east side of his home, and was promised a more than $3,000 cash rebate, according to the DA’s Feb. 2 petition.
Based on the claims, the customer paid for a 12-panel 4.8 kilowatt photovoltaic system but had issues with installation and was eventually told by Evergy that he couldn’t use it and “needed to shut the system down” because it wasn’t properly connected to the power grid, the petition says.
Another $65,440 was ordered paid to a Derby customer who was told a solar panel system would “completely wipe out” his energy bills, that he would receive a $2,022 rebate check and a $19,000 tax credit for installation, and that the panels would be placed on the front of his house, according to the petition.
In reality, the rebate and tax credit were much lower, the panels were placed on the back of the house, and Evergy couldn’t bring the system online because it was missing required equipment, the petition says.
The DA Office’s consumer protection division investigated the company after the customers complained about their dealings with the business. Prosecutors sued on Feb. 2.
Design 1 Group LLC says on its website that it serves 17 states, including Kansas. Wichita is the only city in the state listed in its service area. No one at the company could be reached for comment Friday. The phone number listed on its website was not in service and no one immediately responded to a contact request sent through its webpage.
The business is listed as delinquent on the Kansas Secretary of State’s website.
Default judgments like the one against the solar power company are a type of court order usually entered when one party to a lawsuit doesn’t respond to a summons or fails to appear in court. A motion requesting the default judgment says Design 1 Group LLC neither answered the lawsuit or appeared in court.
Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett urges residents shopping for a solar power system to think about the life of the system and whether the contract is transferable if their home is sold, the real cost of the system and whether they’ll receive any rebates or tax credits, how the system generates and stores power, what direction the panels need to face to maximize energy output, and research whether the seller is properly licensed.
Bennett also encourages potential buyers to read through customer reviews, understand what steps it takes to connect their system to the power company’s energy grid, know maintenance requirements and exactly what a warranty covers, and who is responsible if the system is damaged by storms or in other ways, among other information.
You can file a consumer protection complaint with the DA’s Office by calling 316-660-3600 or by emailing consumer@sedgwick.gov.
This story was originally published May 3, 2024 at 12:50 PM.
