![]() ![]() If you really want to do business with that company, just go to their website or call them up on your own. ![]() What do you do if you’re not certain if the person standing in front of you is legit? Just close the door. This is a common scam, and one that often targets the elderly. But how do you really know they’re who they say they are? It’s easy to make a fake id card and business card. Your doorbell rings, and you see a person with a tie, clipboard, and a laminated card around their neck with the logo of some large, well-recognized brand such as Sunrun or Vivint. If a salesperson is taking a pushy, hard-sell approach with you, this might be the reason why. Here’s a company review posted on by a sales consultant working for Vivint Solar:Ĭommission-only is a type of incentive that often ends up being bad for the customer, as it encourages the salesperson to push for a quick sales at the expense of the customer. Tip 4: They might be commission-only sales It’s important to make an informed decision. This is terrible for the consumer because solar is a major purchase that will stay with your home for 20 years or more. Instead, they advise salespeople to get prospects to decide as quickly as possible, and move onto the next customer. ![]() I have found multiple websites advising door-to-door salespeople that they shouldn’t try to focus on educating the consumer. The way to pinpoint this problem is to ask lots of detailed questions, including the technical details of the system they’re proposing. They’ll pitch you on the pros of solar, but avoid talking about the cases where solar might be a bad investment for a person. Tip 3: Look out for red flags, such as dodging detailed answers.ĭoor-to-door solar sales tend to use superlatives: they might talk about “free” solar, which means they’re trying to sell you on a financing deal. You should always take the time to study a contract before you commit for 20 years, but door-to-door salespeople have been known to not even give you a paper copy of the contract, but instead hand you an iPad to read while they wait. But door-to-door sales often uses high pressure sales tactics that push you to make a quick decision. You can read our article to learn more why these financing products should give you pause, but one of the big reasons is that they require you to sign a contract that is typically around 20 years long. For nearly everyone, these financing deals are a bad choice: you would be better off taking out a loan, if necessary, or putting off solar entirely and perhaps choosing community solar instead. These companies usually offer solar financing through arrangements such as leases and power purchase agreements. Solar door-to-door sales are dominated by the large, national solar installers such as Sunrun, Vivint, Trinity Solar, and Sunnova. Tip 2: Door-to-door solar companies probably want you to finance. Better yet: tell them to simply shut the door on salespeople. If you have elderly relatives that live on their own, the best way to protect them is have a conversation ahead of time and warn them to not buy anything or enter into a contract without talking to you about it first. Many organizations including the FBI, the AARP, and state attorney generals have put out warnings to watch out for door-to-door sales that prey on the elderly. How to avoid being scammed by door-to-door solar sales Tip 1: Talk to your elderly parents or relatives about door-to-door sales ahead of time. Not all solar door-to-door sales is a scam, but how do you protect yourself? Here are some tips: For example, Vivint Solar was sued by the attorney general for the state of New Mexico partly because of dishonest sales practices by Vivint’s door-to-door sales. It should be said that most door-to-door salespeople are ethical professionals trying to do an honest job, but it only takes a few bad apples to give consumers a reason to be wary. It’s not a decision that you should make impulsively, but the goal of door-to-door sales is to convince you to make a decision as quickly as possible. Not only does solar for your home cost quite a bit more than a box of cookies, but it’s also a product that will be part of your home for 20 to 25 years. It’s one thing to buy Girl Scout cookies (Thin Mints!) from someone who shows up unannounced at your home, but with a product like rooftop solar there’s a lot more at stake. If you live in one of the hot markets for rooftop solar such as California, Hawaii, the southwest, and some northeast states, there’s a good chance you’ve heard your doorbell ring and found a solar salesperson at your door, ready to pitch you on the benefits of rooftop solar. With the exploding popularity of rooftop solar, competition among solar installers to capture as much of that market is intense. ![]()
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