“At least one Texas consumer reported that CAM Solar requested their son’s Social Security number for “credit purposes,” with the representation that the information would not affect the family member’s credit,” the lawsuit alleges. “CAM Solar then made the son the primary obligor on the loan used to finance the installation.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against San Antonio-based CAM Solar, claiming that that the company has spent years deceiving consumers across the state.
“This solar panel company lied to and deceived Texans with its fraudulent and deceptive sales tactics. My office will ensure justice is served,” Paxton said in a press release.
“Far too many Texans have been misled into purchasing expensive and complex solar systems under the guise of ‘green energy,’” Paxton said. “That ends now. I will aggressively pursue any bad actor in the solar panel industry that attempts to cheat Texans.”
According to CBS News, Paxton’s lawsuit was triggered, in part, by resident complaints against solar power companies like CAM. Jesus Romo, for instance, told the attorney general’s office that his family had signed a contract with CAM Solar to install panels. He said that he thought he’d save money by switching to solar.
At first, Romo said everything appeared to be in working order; he was pleased with his savings.
“Little did we know, they were poorly installed,” Romo said. “Nothing was screwed to the roof.”
Less than a year later, the panels were blown off Romo’s house during a storm. Romo said that CAM Solar eventually agreed to pay for damage caused by panels that landed in a neighbor’s yard but refused to repair or replace the panels themselves. At the same time, CAM Solar told Romo that he still had to make payments toward the system, even though it no longer worked.
“In at least one instance, a Texas consumer reported every panel installed by CAM Solar detached from a consumer’s roof during a storm less than a year after installation,” the lawsuit says of Romo’s claim. “This caused damage to the consumer’s property and neighboring property, including fences and vehicles. CAM Solar’s own engineer inspected the site and acknowledge the panels had not been installed properly. CAM Solar initially agreed to remediate, then refused, and continued to bill the consumer for monthly payments on panels CAM Solar had itself retrieved from the property.”
In another instance, CAM Solar purportedly requested a Social Security number for financing purposes before making critical alterations to the payment contract.
“At least one Texas consumer reported that CAM Solar requested their son’s Social Security number for “credit purposes,” with the representation that the information would not affect the family member’s credit,” the lawsuit alleges. “CAM Solar then made the son the primary obligor on the loan used to finance the installation.”
Paxton’s lawsuit claims that companies like CAM Solar have violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by misleading customers through deceptive marketing practices and a general failure to deliver promised products and services.
“CAM Solar sells expensive solar systems with long-term promises and fails to provide promised support when those systems fail,” Paxton said.
Sources
Paxton sues Texas rooftop solar company over ‘deceptive acts’
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