May 7, 2026
Imagine signing a 25-year contract for a solar panel system that costs more than $100,000. You'd be pretty eager to get those panels cranking and to see your electricity bill falling.
But what would happen if, instead, your bills went up, the company that sold you the panels went bankrupt, and its successor was trying to collect on lease payments for a system that doesn't work?
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This is exactly the pickle some Connecticut homeowners say they are facing.
"Our energy bills have more than doubled since solar panels have been put on our house," said Jason Pelchat, one of the homeowners interviewed by local station Eyewitness News 3 (1). He said he'd like to get onto his roof himself to rip the panels off — and he's not the only one.
Solar company bankruptcies power big bills for homeowners
According to News 3, Michael Lyons and Jason Pelchat both signed contracts in 2023 with different solar companies (SunPower Corporation and Sunnova) to pay panels off over time through lease payments. But problems started on day one.
"Within 20 hours of the system being turned on, we had errors showing up in our applications. You know, system error, system error, system error," Lyons explained. Multiple visits from technicians failed to fix the issue, and Lyons even disconnected his system out of fear of a fire.
Techs have not been by since SunPower's bankruptcy in August 2024 or Sunnova's filing in June 2025. But a new company, SunStrong, is on the scene, taking over customer accounts from the bankrupt companies.
But here’s the problem: Lyons and Pelchat claim SunStrong didn't fix their panels, but did get fixated on missed payments.
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"They keep sending me emails every week, every week, every week, multiple emails, SunStrong management. This amount is due. This amount is due," Pelchat told the news station.
The frustrated homeowners have now had their credit affected due to not paying the bills, even though, as Pelchat said, "Who in their right mind would pay for something that is absolutely not working?"
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The lights are going out for more solar firms
Lyons and Pelchat aren't the only homeowners facing these kinds of issues. The state's attorney general has opened an investigation into SunStrong after it received more than 60 complaints. SunStrong told Eyewitness News it is cooperating with the investigation and committed to homeowners, but would not answer other questions.
Solar Insure, a specialized insurer for solar panel companies, maintains a list on its website of close to two dozen big solar companies that went bankrupt as of January 2026, many of which had multi-state operations (2). Solar Insure explains that the surge in bankruptcies was driven by a combination of factors, including:
- Higher interest rates that reduced demand for solar loans (3)
- Cash flow issues caused by changes in when solar financing companies pay installers
- A reduction in net metering rates in states like California that led to longer payback periods for solar (4)
- The end of the federal tax credit for solar installations on Dec. 31, 2025 (5).
Bennet Legal, a Texas law firm that has developed an expertise in solar panel issues, explains that when bankruptcies occur, leases are transferred to other solar power companies that are given a legal right to collect the payments.
But, depending on your situation, the workmanship and labor warranty may die with the company you did business with (6).
Prospects for homeowners are dim, but there's a bright side
Homeowners don't have a ton of great options in these situations.
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They can contact the solar panel manufacturer to see what warranty the manufacturer will provide, or reach out to the new company collecting payments to find out if the warranty obligation is also transferred.
With a lot of money at stake, this may also be a situation where calling a lawyer makes sense. But while an attorney can explain your rights and help you make a claim against the original company in bankruptcy court, the bankrupt company probably may not have the assets to pay you any damages.
On the bright side, though, there are ways to reduce the risk of this happening to you — if you don't already have faulty solar panels sitting on your roof. You can protect yourself by:
- Carefully researching a solar company, its business history, and its financials
- Buying panels outright without a long-term contract if possible
- Choosing a solar company that installs a different manufacturer's panels and confirming the panel manufacturer has the equipment warranty
- Considering a third-party panel warranty
Doing your due diligence could help to spare you a lot of hassle. As Lyons said, "This is the worst fight I've ever fought."
Article Sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.
WFSB (1); Solar Insure (2); Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (3); California Public Utilities Commission (4); Internal Revenue Service (5); Bennett Legal (6)
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Christy Bieber has 15 years of experience as a personal finance and legal writer. She has written for many publications including Forbes, Kilplinger, CNN, WSJ, Credit Karma, Insurify and more.
