Pink Energy goes dark in Georgia and across US
Pink Energy is no longer in business.
AUBURN, Ga. - You can turn out the lights for one of the biggest providers of rooftop solar power in Georgia.
After thousands of consumer complaints — and investigations across the country including the FOX 5 I-Team — Pink Energy has gone out of business.
But a statement on the company website said don’t blame them.
"Due to rampant customer discontent resulting from faulty Generac solar equipment, Pink Energy has been forced to close its doors permanently," the statement read.
The FOX 5 I-Team reported earlier how a legal dispute over the quality of key solar hardware prompted finger pointing between Pink Energy and Generac, the maker of the hardware.
Pink Energy goes dark in Georgia and across US
After thousands of consumer complaints and investigations across the country including the FOX 5 I-Team, Pink Energy has gone out of business. FOX 5 I-Team reporter Randy Travis returns with what this means for all their Georgia customers and the future of this growing green energy.
Pink Energy argued Generac provided faulty devices called Snap RS units. When they failed, the entire system went down. Customers blamed Pink Energy.
So did Generac. A spokesperson said it was faulty installation that led to the failures, not the devices themselves.
A melted SnapRS unit removed from the roof of a Pink Energy customer in Georgia.
Pink Energy maintained it was Generac’s fault.
"We remain steadfast in our call for Generac to do a national recall on its defective SnapRS units," the statement said.
Generac has taken over some repairs. A day after the FOX 5 I-Team profiled a personal care home owner’s frustration, a Generac contractor reached out and eventually replaced two dozen SnapRS units.
One day after the FOX 5 I-Team profiled his broken solar power system, Daniel Stancea said Generac contractors responded and got it fixed.
Daniel Stancea is now getting the solar power he paid $82,000 to Pink Energy.
"I took Pink Energy’s word," Stancea said. "They came in and promised me the world. And I took it."
Stancea said the Pink Energy sales representative told him their system would replace his power bill and provide him backup battery power for his patients. He said he was assured the monthly payments to finance his system would be lower than his usual power bill.
But he realized only a partial savings at first — and that was when the system was working.
Stancea admitted he fell for Pink Energy’s slick sales pitch.
"I kick myself for that," he said. "I should have done more homework. And get at least 2-3 estimates."
Daniel Stancea's system now shows he's producing more solar power than he's using, even selling some back to Jackson EMC. And his batteries are fully charged. Finally.
A hidden camera FOX5 I-Team investigation caught a Pink Energy senior sales manager making the same false promises.
No one tracks how many Pink Energy customers live in Georgia. Jackson EMC said Stancea is one of 12 on their books. Walton EMC reports another 13 Pink Energy customers.
Georgia Power said nearly 8000 customers use rooftop solar. Pink Energy is one of the biggest providers, but no specific numbers were available.
At least four states opened investigations into Pink Energy and its questionable sales practices.
Georgia’s attorney general’s office said it was investigating an unnamed rooftop solar provider.
"Why they couldn’t figure something out among themselves and put the customers first is just beyond me," said Don Moreland, executive director of the Georgia Solar Energy Association.
Moreland’s group put out an alert last year about out-of-state companies like Pink Energy.
"It was really quite alarming the claims they were offering," he said.
Moreland said his organization of local solar providers must work harder to overcome any negative hit Pink Energy’s demise will have on the industry overall, especially when the business climate for solar seems so positive.
Congress recently passed legislation increasing the federal tax credit for solar to 30% of its cost. That’s an incentive guaranteed for the next decade.
"The immediate impact to my business hasn’t been all that noticeable," said Montana Bush of Alternative Energy Southeast, a company based in Athens.
"Their bankruptcy serves to reinforce the fact that cheaters only prosper in the short run," Bush said in an email. "This is yet another example to the industry how important relaying good expectations to customers and following through with high quality installation really is."