City Attorney Mike Feuer announced this week that his office has filed a civil complaint and obtained an asset freeze against Nelson Solis, the owner of solar installer company Eco Solar Home Improvement, along with several affiliated entities and associates, for allegedly defrauding Los Angeles homeowners of more than $1.4 million, which the lawsuit claims was either taken in cash or through loans backed by assessments on homeowners’ property taxes, in exchange for little or no work.
 
"Schemes perpetrated by unscrupulous home-improvement businesses, as we allege here, can be devastating for homeowners," said City Attorney Mike Feuer. "My office is fighting back. We’re working aggressively to stop allegedly unlawful practices, obtain restitution for those we allege have been harmed, and empower residents with the facts they need to avoid being victimized in the future."
 
In addition to the asset freeze Feuer obtained, he is seeking a permanent injunction, civil penalties and restitution to make Defendants’ alleged victims whole.
 
Solis and his companies, including Aleman Electric/Eco Solar Plus LLC, along with related businesses and individuals, including Edgmont Eco Construction, Max & Son Inc., Henry Solis, Edduy Peña, Max Ramos Hernandez, and Raul Amaya were each named in the lawsuit alleging a scheme to defraud City Homeowners through the misuse of the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Program.
 
The PACE program is a government program designed to help property owners finance certain energy efficiency home improvement projects, including the installation of solar panels and solar energy equipment through loans backed by property tax assessments. According to the lawsuit, the Defendants allegedly targeted Spanish-speaking Los Angeles homeowners and used high-pressure sales tactics, misrepresentations, and false promises to attempt to lure victims into construction contracts and PACE loans that enriched Defendants at their victims’ expense.
 
The lawsuit alleges that Defendants took out substantial PACE home improvement loans on behalf of homeowners—sometimes even without their consent—while concealing from their victims the terms and true costs of the loans, and failing to perform the construction work they had promised.  Some ofDefendants’ victims state that they were not even aware of the identities of the PACE companies financing “their” loans, until months after Defendants allegedly had made off with the money.
 
Once the Defendants received the proceeds of PACE loans or large upfront cash payments, they would allegedly abandon the homeowner’s projects, typically without performing any meaningful work. Most victims’ projects allegedly either were never started, remain unfinished, or resulted in significant damage to the victims’ property.  As a result, many of Defendants’ alleged victims have paid large sums in cash or have tens of thousands of dollars in PACE loans attached to their homes, for work that was not delivered.
 
Anyone who believes that they may be a victim of these alleged practices should call the LA City Attorney’s Office at 213-978-8070.

Avoid fraud

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)  offers several recommendations for avoiding scams when it comes to the installation of solar panels on your home. They emphasize that your  compare detailed bids from several companies and that these bids should have specifics about the system, including:

      1. the expected performance of the equipment and size of the panels
      2. the full cost of installation, including any building or electrical permit fees
      3. whether it’s guaranteed to produce a certain amount of energy
      4. what warranties apply to the equipment (such as the panels and inverters) and the installation workmanship
 

If you own the system, you need to maintain — or pay someone to maintain — the panels and equipment, unless the seller includes that in the contract. Maintenance could include repairing or replacing the inverter or cleaning the panels occasionally if it doesn’t rain often. Your equipment may be covered by a manufacturer’s warranty for the initial period you have it.

The company

When you look for a company, ask friends, family and neighbors for references. Check a company’s history with your state and local consumer protection agencies and state contractors licensing board. Ask if the company has the licenses, certificates or bonding required by your state, county and city. For example, your state may require an installer to have an electrical contractor’s license. Also, search the company name online and see what you find.

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