ComplaintsforPenguin Home Solutions, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  07/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  I signed a purchase agreement with ********************* and *******************************, of Penguin Home Solutions *** on, or very close to, November 29th 2022. They set my site audit date for December 20th 2022. On December 20th 2022 someone from Penguin Home solutions *** showed up on time as scheduled and successfully performed the site audit, which is essentially a physical inspection of the roof to make sure the panels can be placed on the roof successfully. On February 22nd 2023, the installation team from Penguin Home Solutions *** came to my house on schedule, and installed the solar panels on my roof. At this point, the paperwork and appointments had taken longer than ** hoped, however, I cant say that it took an unreasonable amount of time. You could say at this point that I was happy with the way this was all going. I then filled out the ********** Metering Application (Form 79-1151B-02) and it was received and accepted. Then I received a confirmation email on March 9th 2023 that said: This confirmation email verifies that the non-refundable interconnection fee of $145 has also been received for this interconnection request (not applicable to Applicants who selected "Single-family Affordable Solar Housing" (SASH) or ************************** Single-Family Affordable Solar Housing" (DAC-SASH) as a rebate option below). The interconnection is the final step in installing the solar panels. This is the process where the installers from the solar company meet with the power company workers (in this case PG&E) on site, and hook the solar panels up to the power grid. Once this is done, the solar panels work and the entire process is complete. The first appointment for my interconnection was scheduled for March 23rd 2023. On March 23rd the representative from Penguin Home Solutions did show up when they were supposed to. They waited maybe an hr before telling me that the PG&E representative that was supposed to be meeting them there that day for the interconnection (allegedly), did not show up. They told me that someone from Penguin would call and reschedule me to have my interconnection on another date. I do not know whether Penguin did in fact schedule PG&E for this or not. On April 15th 2023, after many many calls and texts to ******************************* and *********************, **** finally texted me: Ill help ya get PTO connection setup Monday. On Tuesday April 18th (after not being contacted by **** at all) I texted ****: Hey ****. Can we get that interconnection back on track? He replied: Yes Im on it. Then on April 26th two employees of PG&E show up at my door without anyone telling me that my interconnection was scheduled for that day. I immediately called ********************* while he was clearly just waking up and was as clueless as to what is going on as I was. An hr went by and the PG&E guys told me that the Penguin Home Solutions employees didnt show up so we would once again have to reschedule the interconnection. The next day (April 27th) I texted ****: Hey ****. Were you able to talk to anybody about what happened yesterday? I have no idea what was really supposed to happen yesterday. I'm pretty confused about what's going on with the whole thing to be honest. Do you have any idea when we can get the inner connections scheduled? **** replied: They will be reaching out any day to to schedule.Nobody called me or texted me to reschedule this for weeks all the while I was texting and calling to try and figure out if any progress had been made. Clearly no progress was being made, and it seemed like they didnt care at all. ********* and **** had already gotten their money from the sale, and didnt seem to want to put any energy into helping out their client. On May 9th 2023, I texted ****: Hey ****. Nobody has reached out to me to schedule my interconnection. These panels have been sitting on my roof since January or February. There have been two attempts by the contractors and PG&E to get this interconnection done. Is it really this hard to get these things hooked up? **** replied: Hey in the air about to land and then I'm going to dive into this. He made no further progress on this whatsoever, and didnt contact me again until late June. On February 22nd 2023 I had my panels installed. Since then Penguin Home Solutions *** and their two sales contractors ********************* and **************** have completely neglected their duties to me and the solar system I purchased from them. Theyve received over $30,000 from me for the system and they also have already taken the $145 for the interconnection on March 9th. Almost four months ago today I was charged for the interconnection. Now four months later there has been two failed attempts at connecting my panels to the power grid. There have been countless calls and texts between myself and **** and *********. They have only produced one actual interconnection appointment, which was the first failed attempt on March 23rd 2023. Since then they havent even gotten me an appointment for an interconnection. In other words in over three months they havent been able to even put another date on the calendar to fulfill their part of this business deal that I have paid in full. I gave them a final notice on June 23rd that said that I am very sorry to have to escalate this to this point, but if they dont get me an interconnection appointment by July 1st, I will have no choice but to go to the Better Business Bureau. **** texted me a couple things to try and calm me. He even left a message saying that he was willing to leave Penguin Home Solutions if they didnt get me an appointment. As has been the case this entire experience- **** will say whatever he needs to say to get me off his back, and then does nothing to actually help the situation. Since June 27th I have heard nothing from either **** or *********. At this point it seems like this interconnection will never happen unless I have a third party intervene. This has been a total nightmare of a business deal. I actually cancelled a quote with another solar company in order to go with Penguin. This was a grave mistake. Im certain the other company (Freedom Forever) would have gotten this done by now (in nine months). The result is that I am still paying far more for power than I would be with working solar panels on my roof. For this reason, ****, *********, and Penguin have cost me hundreds of dollars in power costs, and countless hours of mental anguish. I need the BBB to please help me get these people to honor their business obligations and get me an interconnection appointment, not another endless chain of excuses. I have all the text message chains that I can produce if needed along with all the emails between myself and Penguin Home Solutions. I also, think that I should be awarded financial compensation for the complete negligence that has cost me actual money in power costs.

• Initial Complaint

  06/23/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We are having issues with our solar panels tripping the electrical breaker , we believe it’s an intermittent problem and or a defective product . We have called this company and left messages multiple times and we cannot get anyone to call us back . We want Simone to come out here and find out what’s going on before the house catches on fire .

  Business response

  07/13/2023

  An install crew from Penguin Home Solutions performed a service call on the homeowner's solar system on July 3, 2023. Mr. ********* confirmed this morning (7/13/23) that the issue is resolved and the system is operating normally. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at 1-888-488-8001. 

  Customer response

  07/13/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

• Initial Complaint

  06/21/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  WARING ! DO NOT HIRE THIS COMPANY!!! We ..... both seniors .....met with ****** ******** of OneMoreDoor-Solar (on 2/28/2023) who recommended Penguin as great manufacturer and supplier of solar panels. ****** insisted on a upfront $1000 deposit guaranteeing the check would NOT be cashed until i***allation was completed by May 1, 2023 . Penguin cashed the check on May 10 without getting our approval or doing any work. They took our money and ran. We have contacted both ****** and Penguin many many times requesting a refund. 3 weeks ago ****** informed us Penguin mailed the check. Another lie. Penguin will not answer our calls or emails. ****** is a complete waste of time and I regret letting him in our house. DO NOT hire Penguin as you will get ripped off. The worst part .......... Penguins failure caused us to miss NEM2 which results in the doubling the price of a solar system and receiving less credit from Edison. DO NOT HIRE THEM.

  Business response

  07/11/2023

  For cash contracts our normal & usual payment structure is a deposit of $1,000 or 10% of contract price whichever is less is collected at signing, milestone payment at i***allation & final payment/remaining balance due at final inspection.
  Sale date was 2/19/23. Called to schedule site visit on 2/21/23.
  We did perform a site assessment 3/07/23, reports and preliminary design layout as well as pre-submitted 3/15/23 & pre-approved 5/05/23 with utility provider to secure *** ***, SCE Application ID#: ***-******.
  On or about 3/13/23 it was noted that we needed a roof waiver from the homeowner due to pre-existing water damage detected in the attic. There was some back on forth about whether the homeowner would like to proceed with a roof waiver. The topic of water damage & a roof waiver was approached for the last time on 5/30/23.
  This project was cancelled on 05/30/23.
  Full Refund was issued on 7/06/23 (proof of refund attached), if not received in the mail already it should be received by homeowner no later than this week. 
  This would normally be charged $250.00 site audit fee, $500 for plans, design, and application fees, however we did refund the homeowner their full $1,000.00 deposit as to not cause undue burden.

• Initial Complaint

  06/21/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  My solar was installed the first week of April 2023. It is now two and a half months later with no timeline or response as to when my solar will be turned on or finalized. I called and texted the number I was provided on 6/5/23 with no response. I have left messages with their answering service on 6/5/23, 6/9/23, 6/20/23 and again today 6/21/23 with no response. I received a lien notification from the construction company who installed that still has not been taken care of in mid April. I just want to know what is going on. My utility bill is continuing to be billed and all this sunlight is going to waste.

  Business response

  07/19/2023

  A Penguin representative contacted Ms. *********** to resolve the issue. The final inspection for the solar system is scheduled for July 26, 2023 - the earliest date available. The lien was released (please see attached lien release notice). 

• Initial Complaint

  05/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  In April 2023 I spoke with SCE about annual charges that were incurring on our acct. They told me we were exceeding our usage of what Penguin submitted to them in the application and said it appeared our system wasn't working. I contacted Penguin customer service (jasmine) & was asked to send our SCE bill to them for review and they would contact SCE. She told me panels were producing and we were way under usage. They were to contact SCE to get it straightened out and it hasn't happened. I'm now stuck with a $4,000.00 bill that I can't afford to pay. . This is a $78K system (including finance charges). Please fix this

  Business response

  05/25/2023

  Customer service and our operations team is looking into the system further. The customer has been contacted and if the system is malfunctioning it will be fixed.

  Customer response

  05/27/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:

  I have not been contacted by Penguin and they did not state they would contact SCE to resolve the 4,000.00 bill

  
  

  Business response

  06/08/2023

  Penguin has a power production guarantee and the contract clearly states how the guarantee works. Penguin is not responsible for utility bills.  A customer service rep will be in contact. 

• Initial Complaint

  05/05/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Solar system was installed on 4/11/23 and was told that the roofer will get in contact with me to replace cracked tile and has not been done. Was told that I would get a call for my inspection and has not happened. Was told the unit is not on until the inspection. Have left 7 calls with their answering service as well as messages and texts on the number that called to verify when HOA approves plans. No response from the company and emails that I have sent have remained unanswered. They damaged my garage siding when they were doing their install. The electrical was placed on the roof tiles instead of being placed under the eaves. So the entire roof from front to the rear has electrical on the roof tiles. We have had rain so I suspect water damage has now been done because of the broken tile that hasn’t been repaired. Any roofing company needing to do repair on my roof will not touch it because of the placement of this wiring that is not up to code. I called the city of Menifee and was told that the home owner has to schedule the inspection? And I was never told to do it, the company would schedule is what I was told.

  Business response

  05/25/2023

  The Installation was completed to code and approved plans by the city.  The customer has been contacted by customer service to further assist the customer. 

• Initial Complaint

  05/01/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We purchased solar panels for our house. Penguin Home solutions installed. Penguin Home solutions did not put the barriers we purchased around solar panels to prevent birds from nesting under panels. We now have pigeons nesting under solar panels and they are interfering with panels working. I have tried to communicate via email and phone. After telling Penguin Home solution representative via email and phone for the last three weeks no one has contacted me to remedy the situation.

  Business response

  05/01/2023

  Hello, The product requested is an extra service.  I will have a rep reach out to discuss. our number is ###-###-#### if you would like to call and speak to a customer service rep.  Also your sales rep can be of assistance. sorry for any inconvenience. 

  ***** *******

  CEO

  Customer response

  05/01/2023

   I am rejecting this response because: I paid for this extra service and it was not installed.
  
  

  Customer response

  05/19/2023

  Still waiting to hear back I have called several times and they keep saying they will have someone call me back and they never do.

  Business response

  05/25/2023

  We have escalated this to the project management team.  A quote will be provided for the bird barrier

  Customer response

  05/25/2023

   I am rejecting this response because: I have tried contacting penguin solutions about sending a paper contract. I was told in an email that the bird barrier was included in the quote that I accepted. I have called them overv5 times only to be told someone would call me back the same day. I am still waiting for the call.

   
  

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  04/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We signed our solar agreement which was serviced by Penguin Home Solutions. They installed the solar panels almost immediately on 9/6/2022. They installed a broken panel which needed to be replaced. The panel was not replaced until 6 months later. Our loan has no payment required for the first year. They immediately withdrew all the funds from that loan which becomes due in July 2023 for payments. They had a dispute with PG&E but upgraded our box in December 2022. Then I’ve been literally calling every week for 4 months without any movement on our project. They stated they had downsizing. They come for an inspections only they don’t call the city. They told me that the city didn’t show. I called the city and they confirmed they never scheduled an inspection and that they were doing next day inspections. Then another long wait with me calling weekly. They finally schedule an inspection and come out only to fail the inspection for not submitting updated plans to the city. They did not call me or even tell me. I had to call the city and then call them. Now the plans are submitted but our city is waiting for them to pay a $80 fee which they haven’t done. They won’t respond to any of my attempts for contact the last two weeks to even give me an update. I have no idea when this will be finished. They will respond to this complaint by saying they are working with the city and the customer to resolve the issue. Do not believe them. They do not care about their customers enough to even respond to their customers.

  Business response

  05/01/2023

  We are very sorry for the poor customer service. We did have to downsize for a couple of months but we are back to building staff and business practices.  I will get this to the correct department and get the project on track.

  ***** *******

  CEO

  Customer response

  05/03/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  It is now two days later since they responded and I have received a return call to indicate a timeline or the process moving forward. I am in the exact place I was prior to lodging the complaint. I need resolution.

  Business response

  05/25/2023

  Customer service will be reaching out to the customer as requested.

• Initial Complaint

  04/11/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I had solar panels installed on my home with Penguin Home Solutions INC, and they completed the job. I have been trying to get a hold of them regarding the Unconditional Final Release and have yet to receive a response back. I have requested a manager and they will not provide me one. Do to their lack of professionalism, curtesy and contract my home is now on a lein. I am in need of them to provide the contractor with proof of payment and myself as well. This is causing much unneeded stress on my husband and I

  Business response

  05/01/2023

  Penguin will resume business after temporary downsizing.  All liens will be satisfied if they have not already.  Customer service is coming back to the office.  

  ***** *******

  CEO

• Initial Complaint

  02/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Solar was purchased Feb 2022, for 71,500. Installer caused catastrophic damage to my home damaging nearly every electronic devices and system in my home. I have been without water to my house for 3 days as a result of incorrect wiring I work from home and have lost 15 days of wages not being able to get online because my house had no power My solar system is still not working and permitted by PGE 1 year after, and I have paid in full In the past 3 weeks, and 2 visits from them, they have caused over $15,000 in damage to my house and its primary systems like well water pump, water filtration system, irrigation system, garage doors.

  Business response

  03/03/2023

  We have been very apologetic for the inconvenience and for any damage that occurred.  We were working as a subcontractor for Sustainable Energy Solutions on this project.  We followed the plans provided  by The Contractor.  The plans were not correct or not complete and a component malfunctioned.  The company that built the plans for the contractor was also the manufacturer of the component that failed.  They replaced the component at no cost and helped for a short time to complete the install.  We have been working with the contractor and the customer to remedy the situation and we already approved the settlement agreement.  It was months later that more of the customers electronics failed. this was a surprise to us.  Even though we are available and willing, The customer has stopped communicating with us and will not allow us on the property according to Sustainable, and he decided to have a third party finish the work and inspect the work, however the third party is actually the license qualifier for Sustainable Energy.  Sustainable (for quite sometime the contractor has withheld about $60,000 owed to Penguin from other projects we worked on and he plans to settle with Mr. ***** using our funds.)  We need to be added to the settlement agreement and held harmless if they are using money owed to us as the settlement.  As far as I know Alan Lambert from Sustainable Energy has already settled this matter. We have not been involved in the negotiation except for receiving emails from the contractor informing us of their plans to settle. If the contractor has settled this then we need to be part of the settlement agreement.  

  Customer response

  03/08/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  1. There has been no settlement reached with my by anyone

  2. My system is not working, and in fact been shut off entirely for health and safety reasons

  3. There has been no attempt made to remedy the problems or get my system online.

  
  

  
  

  Business response

  03/13/2023

  Sustainable Energy the contractor for this project asked us for our approval for a settlement.  I was informed this was proposed by the customer. We are not aware of any health and safety issues and the system should not be turned on until the System is granted PTO from the utility company.  The contractor should be handling the PTO application.  The Project did pass final inspection and met city and county code. We need to speak to the customer directly as we are not aware the current situation.  We will reach out by email and phone.  We would like to remedy our portion of the unfortunate circumstances.    

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