Newsroom

Residential Solar Financing Fraud:
A Resource for Journalists

Background, sourced data, and interview availability for reporters covering the residential solar financing crisis. If you are on deadline, email us and say so — we will prioritise it.

About Bennett Legal

Bennett Legal represents homeowners who believe they were misled during the purchase or financing of a residential solar system.

The firm's solar practice focuses on the financing side of these transactions — the loan, the lease, the power purchase agreement, the lien, and the arbitration clause — rather than on installation and workmanship disputes alone. That distinction matters for reporters: most homeowner harm in this market is created at the moment of financing, and most of it is resolved in private arbitration rather than in open court.

Bennett Legal is based in Dallas and is led by attorney Charles Bennett, who is licensed in Texas. Because the great majority of residential solar contracts contain binding arbitration clauses, these matters are typically heard by JAMS or AAA arbitrators rather than by a local court — which is why homeowner representation in this area is not geographically limited the way conventional litigation is.

Areas of focus

Misrepresentations during the sales process
Solar financing agreements
Hidden dealer fees
Electronic signature disputes
Contractor abandonment
Lender liability
Arbitration claims
UCC lien disputes
Installer bankruptcy matters

Data and sources

Free to reuse with attribution. Every figure is traced to a government agency, a published research report, or a court filing — and each has its own anchor so you can cite a single number.

Solar Financing Fraud: Key Statistics

Complaint volumes, hidden dealer fees, loan terms, state enforcement actions, and installer insolvencies, 2018–2026.

Resultado reciente
$170,000recuperados

Una propietaria. Un préstamo solar.

Este es el resultado que Bennett Legal obtuvo para una propietaria en un asunto contra Sunlight Financial.

$113,000

Préstamo solar cancelado por completo

Sunlight Financial

$58,000

Efectivo pagado a la clienta

Además de la corrección del crédito

$170,000

Recuperación financiera total

Gravamen UCC sobre su vivienda retirado

Sunlight Financial acordó:

  • Cancelar por completo el préstamo solar de $113,000 de la clienta
  • Retirar el gravamen UCC sobre su vivienda
  • Corregir su crédito
  • Pagarle $58,000 en efectivo

Los resultados anteriores no garantizan resultados futuros. Cada caso se evalúa de forma individual.

Interview topics

Charles Bennett is available for background or on-record commentary on the following subjects.

How residential solar financing actually works
Dealer fees and undisclosed markups
Federal tax credit misrepresentation
Electronic signature and consent disputes
UCC liens on residential property
What happens to homeowners when an installer fails
Why these disputes end up in arbitration instead of court
Consumer protection law as applied to solar
Targeting of older and non-English-speaking homeowners
The legal options available to a homeowner

Background on Charles Bennett

Charles Bennett leads Bennett Legal's solar financing practice. He is licensed in Texas (State Bar No. 24086454) and is a cum laude graduate of SMU Dedman School of Law. He was recognized in Super Lawyers in 2025 and 2026 and by The National Trial Lawyers as a Top 100 Civil Plaintiff Lawyer. Before entering consumer and injury practice he secured international arbitration awards on behalf of professional athletes and agents — relevant background on a beat where nearly every dispute is resolved in a private arbitral forum rather than a courtroom. Full biography.

Media contact

All media inquiries, interview requests, data requests, and podcast bookings.

Amy Rivera

Marketing Lead · Bennett Legal

[email protected]

(972) 972-4969

12770 Coit Road, Suite 720
Dallas, Texas 75251

Amy coordinates press access and asset requests. Substantive legal questions are routed to Charles Bennett; Amy does not provide legal commentary.

What we can turn around quickly

  • ·On-record or background interviews with Charles Bennett
  • ·Explanation of a specific loan, lease, or PPA document you are working from
  • ·Sourced data and citations in a usable format
  • ·High-resolution logos, headshots, and infographics
  • ·Referral to independent sources — consumer advocates, researchers, agencies

Response times

Same day for deadline requests received before 3:00 p.m. Central. Next business day otherwise.

Information on this page is provided for journalistic reference and is not legal advice. Contacting Bennett Legal does not create an attorney-client relationship. Allegations described in third-party enforcement actions are unproven unless a court or tribunal has found otherwise.