Understanding Equipment Ownership vs. Service Responsibility in Solar Agreements
May 18, 2026 No Comments
Read More » Your TECO bill keeps climbing in 2026. Your system may not be producing at the level you expected based on the sales presentation. Or a UCC-1 filing on your solar equipment just surfaced during your home sale or refinance. You are not alone — and there may be legal review options available depending on the facts. Submit your information below in under 60 seconds for a free, no-obligation intake. A Tampa specialist will collect the basic facts so qualified legal counsel may review whether you may be eligible for a legal review.
Tampa homeowners contact SCRC with patterns that come up over and over again. If any of these sound like your situation, the intake form above takes under a minute.
Tampa Electric residential bills have climbed faster than nearly any other major utility in the country. Independent analysis estimates the average TECO residential customer is paying roughly 82% more than they were five years ago — approximately $939 more per year. On January 1, 2026, TECO implemented another rate increase of approximately $5.51 per month on top of a sequence of 2025 base-rate hikes, storm-recovery surcharges from Hurricane Helene and Milton, and fuel-charge adjustments. For Tampa homeowners who were sold solar on a promise of locking in low energy costs, these compounding TECO increases are exactly the scenario the sales pitch claimed to eliminate.
Tampa Bay’s coastal climate combines high humidity, salt exposure, and intense Gulf-side sun. These conditions accelerate wear on solar panels, inverters, and roof penetrations. A common Tampa complaint is a system that produced near-spec in year one and has steadily underperformed since — while the lease or loan payment stays exactly the same.
Tampa Bay took direct and indirect impacts from Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton in 2024 — among the most destructive storm seasons in a century for the region. TECO is recovering hundreds of millions of dollars of storm-restoration costs from customers. Homeowners with damaged or non-producing solar systems are often paying twice: a solar
payment for a system that isn’t producing, plus elevated TECO bills carrying storm-recovery
surcharges.
Florida Consumer Protections That May Apply to Your Solar Contract
Florida has consumer-protection statutes — including the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) — that a qualified attorney may review when evaluating a solar contract dispute. Federal protections that may also be relevant include the Truth in Lending Act and the FTC’s “Cooling-Off Rule” for door-to-door and in-home sales. SCRC does not provide legal advice or determine whether any of these apply to a specific case. The homeowner provides their documentation; documentation may be reviewed by qualified law firm partner Consumer Advocacy Law Group, which decides whether the facts may be a potential basis for a legal review.
Tampa Bay has been one of the most aggressively canvassed solar markets in Florida. High- pressure door-to-door sales, optimistic production estimates, and sales pitches built around now-changed net-metering assumptions have left a meaningful share of homeowners with contracts that don’t match what they thought they signed.
Take this intake quiz to see whether your situation may qualify for legal review.
The homeowner submits the basic intake form on this page or calls 888-918-2083. No payment, no obligation, no commitment. The intake simply collects the basic facts of the situation.
The homeowner provides their solar contract, any finance or lease agreement, recent FPL bills, sales materials they still have (brochures, text messages, emails, recordings of the sales conversation if any), and any prior communications with the installer or finance company..
Documentation collected during intake may be reviewed by Consumer Advocacy Law Group, the independent law firm partner. SCRC does not perform legal analysis. The law firm decides whether the facts may be a potential fit for a legal review.
If a legal review path is offered, the homeowner is presented with the fixed-fee structure in writing before any decision. The homeowner decides whether to engage. There is no obligation at any prior step.
The decision to stop making payments on a solar lease, loan, or PPA must only be considered under the advice and representation of a qualified attorney. Stopping payments on your own —
before any legal review path is in place — can create additional problems, including default proceedings and credit-reporting issues. SCRC does not advise, suggest, or sanction the payment
or non-payment of any financial obligations.
Possibly. Florida and federal law typically give homeowners a 3-business-day right to cancel door-to-door and in-home sales contracts, but that window is not the only path. After 3 days, cancellation generally depends on the specific facts of the case — what was said during the sale, what the contract actually contains, how the system has performed, and whether the homeowner has experienced losses tied to the agreement. SCRC collects and organizes documentation from the homeowner so a qualified attorney with the law firm partner may review whether the situation may qualify for a legal review.
Tampa’s climate — including intense UV, high humidity, salt air on the coast, and hurricane exposure — places ongoing stress on solar systems. When a system underperforms its sales- claim production estimate, when warranty claims go unanswered, or when storm damage isn’t addressed by the installer, those facts may be relevant. A qualified attorney may review whether non-performance and installer responsiveness raise issues that may be a potential basis for a legal review. Sometimes raise concerns. Many Orlando homeowners come to SCRC specifically because a UCC-1 surfaced during a sale or refinance and they want documentation reviewed by qualified legal counsel before the closing date.
A UCC-1 filing is a notice giving the solar company or lender a security interest in the solar equipment — it is on the equipment, not on the home itself. In practice, however, it can complicate the title and lending process during a sale because buyers and mortgage lenders sometimes raise concerns. Many Tampa homeowners come to SCRC specifically because a UCC-1 surfaced during a sale or refinance and they want documentation reviewed by qualified legal counsel before the closing date.
A bill that went up instead of down does not, by itself, automatically establish anything. But it is often a sign that what was represented during the sale — production estimates, savings claims, net-metering benefits, escalator clauses — may not match what the contract or the system actually delivers. A qualified attorney may review the gap between what was represented and what the contract actually says, and whether that gap may be a potential issue worth pursuing.
Often, yes — the contract itself is typically held by a finance company or lessor that is separate from the installer who put the panels on the roof. That is one reason installer bankruptcy is so frustrating for homeowners: the payments do not stop just because the installer disappeared. A qualified attorney may review whether installer non-performance and warranty issues may be a potential basis for relief depending on how the contract and finance agreement are structured.
No — and you should not stop payments on your own. The decision to stop making payments must only be considered under the advice and representation of a qualified attorney. Stopping payments without legal guidance can create additional problems, including credit reporting issues and default proceedings. SCRC’s intake step simply collects information; any decisions about payments are made later, with attorney guidance, only if the case moves forward.
The initial intake is free. If a legal review path is offered after the documentation is reviewed, SCRC works on a fixed-fee structure that is explained in full before the homeowner decides whether to engage. No homeowner is asked to commit financially until they have a clear, written breakdown of the fee.
Typically: the solar contract itself, any finance or lease agreement, recent TECO (Tampa Electric) bills (ideally 12 months), any text messages, emails, brochures, or recordings from the sales process, and any communications with the installer or finance company. The homeowner provides the documentation; SCRC simply collects and organizes it so it may be reviewed by qualified law firm partner Consumer Advocacy Law Group.
No. SCRC is a marketing and intake service. SCRC does not provide legal advice and does not represent homeowners in legal matters. SCRC connects homeowners with Consumer Advocacy Law Group, an independent law firm partner that specializes in solar contract matters. Submitting an intake to SCRC does not create an attorney-client relationship.
The initial intake form takes under 60 seconds. After it is submitted, a Tampa specialist follows up to collect the basic documentation. Documentation may then be reviewed by Consumer Advocacy Law Group. If the case may be a potential fit for legal review, the homeowner is presented with the fixed-fee structure and decides whether to engage. There is no obligation at any stage of the intake.
Takes under 60 seconds. Speak to a Tampa specialist today.
Call: 888-918-2083
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