Energy Service Partners (ESP)

They are prompt and communicative, got the job done a lot sooner than expected!

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After 6 years of averaging $250-300/month for SMUD (electric) and PG&E (Gas) I decided to go Solar. I got many quotes that ranged from 30k-60k, but I ended up going with ESP for 2 reasons, the sales rep was a family friend and they had this https://www.joinespservices.com/premier_plan/ which specifically lists “Performance Guarantee” and states “Our team will identify any issues with the system within 30 days of the issue occurring. If the issue is not caught within that time, we will pay for actual production that was lost during downtime, based on historic data and/or comparable panels in system performance.”. In addition, Jimmy personally promised to take care of me no matter what. I would never pay another electric bill, in fact SMUD would cut me an annual check for energy they used from me! I would also get 16k back from my taxes if I hurried up and pulled the trigger. So, I did. Biggest mistake of my life. The installation was ok, they came and did it within a few weeks of signing, but they left tools and nails all over my roof that caused gutter problems. They did not paint match anything like they promised. Then they FAILED the SMUD inspection, and it took 6 months for them to correct the problem to get it turned on. I ended up signing 2 contracts. The first one guaranteed production of 13902 kWh, but right before my scheduled install my family friend Jimmy told me I had to sign an updated one that guaranteed 10,493 kWh. Jimmy explained this was due to tree shading, but not to worry the original guarantee offset my usage by 107%, this change is just what they will guarantee 99% of my usage, but in reality, the system produces much more than the guarantee. Finally gets turned on. Never got the conduit paint matched, they never came to clean up their tools and nails and now my panels have been sitting up there for 6 months. I request my free annual cleaning included in the premier package. They said no it hasn’t been a year, I had to fight with them tooth and nail to get them to do this. I did not get my tax credit. It was differed to the 2024 tax season and there is no actual guarantee you will get any tax credit. I financed the solar, so the total amount is over $75k. I paid way more because of the guarantees, annual cleaning and that I had this family friend Jimmy I could rely on. 2-4 months in I am concerned. My SMUD bills have been over $100 month PLUS my $200 dollar solar payment. Jimmy starts reimbursing me out of his own pocket for my SMUD bills while he tries to figure out what is going on. He promises to get me a solar battery at cost which would offset the SMUD bills and I would get a rebate. I am not ok with this because the deal was no more electric bills. THAT’S WHY I AM PAYING 75K!!! I START PUSHING HARDER TO GET ANSWERS, Jimmy disappears – fled CA. I still have the contract that guarantees my system will at least produce 10,493 kWh, I check with SMUD and for 7 months I have average production of 716 kWh. 716 x 12 = 8592. I call, email, threaten to report ESP to the BBB – nothing. They just say my system is producing and ignore me. I paid 75k for this guarantee and “premier package” and it was all lies. Photos below. I am paying more for electricity on Solar than I was before spending 75k to go Solar. I am in the process of filing with the BBB and speaking to consumer attorneys. Please contact me if you are in the same boat and we can take down this corrupt company. aalvarezspam@gmail.com

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I give your people an A+. The rep Abby is always a pleasure to work with and keeps me informed of all the process. She also shows she cares about how we are and if we have any concerns. Your installation crew was great. They came in did the work and were very professional. When they were done they showed us what they did and then left the area so clean you would not have known the were even hear. So far my interactions with your EPS has been excellent.

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Everything was going well and installation process was so great. The main issue started, when company started submitting the permission to operate. There was an error in title and pge asked us to update on the account and resubmit the form. I emailed pge and updated it in 2 days, but ESP PTO team did not reply to any query to resubmit the form. I called numerous times, chatted, emailed everyone i could, not a single response. At this point, I have panels on top of my roof just sitting and I can only hope that ESP team will resubmit when they want to.

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I am sorry to report my negative experiences with Energy Service Partners. The entire process with this company has been exceedingly frustrating and time-consuming. If I could I would give it zero stars... The project took an unreasonably long 14 months to complete, with each stage of the process dragging on for weeks due to scheduling and delivery issues. The lack of efficient communication was evident in the fact that you had to deal with 4 or 5 project managers, none of whom responded to my calls or texts in a timely manner, if at all. Attempts to escalate concerns to supervisors were met with silence, leaving you me in the dark. One of the most concerning aspects of my experience was ESP's apparent reluctance to fulfill their contractual obligations. They attempted to dissuade me from a panel upgrade that was clearly outlined in my contract, even going as far as trying to install a different panel than what was specified. This obstruction took approximately 2 months to resolve. Furthermore, the use of unlicensed contractors raises significant safety and quality concerns. It is disconcerting to learn that ESP employs unlicensed contractors, as indicated by one of the main installers. Another point of contention is the promise of a reimbursement for solar payments in the contract if the project isn't completed before payments are due. Despite making numerous solar loan payments and facing high electricity bills, I have received no response or reimbursement from ESP. This lack of follow-through on their "courtesy" gesture is inexcusable. It appears that the only bright spot in my experience with Energy Service Partners has been the customer service representatives who dutifully take down my requests, though they seem to fall on deaf ears. In light of these numerous issues and disappointments, it is evident that ESP's services do not meet the standards of professionalism and reliability that customers like me should expect from a company in the energy industry.

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My solar project started in March 2022. I was told my project would be completed by Sep 2022. It is now almost November 2023, 19 months later, and I am still waiting for ESP to finish the project and fix basic mistakes. Here are the numerous issues I faced: - I was told I would need to upgrade my electrical panel, which pushed installation to August 2022. No big deal. However, I was told they would install the solar panels and upgrade the electrical panel on the same day, followed by a final inspection only 2 weeks later. Instead, they "connected" the solar panels to an empty electical panel box connected t...nothing. That did not stop ESP from telling me my project was complete and taking full payment before becoming unresponsive. - I finally learn weeks later that the panel needs to be installed by outside electricians. Why this wasn't understood or communicated before is never made clear to me. It takes 6 weeks to finally schedule this upgrade for December, which is 4 months after my already delayed installation. - On the day of the scheduled panel upgrade NO ONE SHOWS UP. I come to find out this was the fault of ESP canceling the job due to some permit issue, but this was never communicated to me. My project coordinator, Kasey, is again unresponsive. Any information I discover is communicated through the outside electricians hired by ESP instead. - After little communication, Kasey finally updates me and blames SDGE (which I discover is a recurring pattern for ESP). But I get no updates as to when the panel will be upgraded. Any updates she promises me are instead met with silence. Within a couple weeks, Kasey's phone is disconnected. No one from ESP reaches out to me about my project. I have to keep calling, and eventually discover I have a new project coordinator Esther. It is now late December. - Esther finally gets the project moving. Apparently we are still waiting on permits, which don't come through until Jan 2023. However, now I have to wait for the electric work to be rescheduled, which is now set for late February 2023. - The electricity panel is finally upgraded. But again, the panel is not connected to the solar panels. I am now told that a line transfer needs to happen before an inspection, which was at no point explained to me. As before, the electricians are providing me significantly more communication and explanation than ESP. - My inspection is scheduled for mid March. The inspection passes. I am told I am on the home stretch and that I just need to wait for the Permission To Operate, which takes a couple weeks. - Turns out "a couple weeks" means months. I keep waiting and being told by ESP that SDGE is to blame. However, ESP does little to investigate why there is a delay. By June, I have finally connected the right people from SDGE, ESP and the city inspectors, work that ESP should have been doing. It turns out that SDGE says they haven't recieved the inspection report, which the inspectors say they have sent multiple times. SDGE and the city are extremely responsive in contrast to ESP. At this point, I have lost faith in Esther and am now working with her manager Sam, who promises me some financial restitution and to resolve the issue. (I was originally offered a $20 gift card for the significant delays, which I found insulting). - Sam is no better. A few weeks go by and he also keeps telling me SDGE is still to blame. He also never delivers the promised reimbursement. Eventually, he becomes unresponsive and his number disconnects, again with no word or follow up from ESP. I again have to track down who at ESP is managing my project. I am eventually connected to Elena. - Turns out that ESP PUT THE WRONG ADDRESS ON THE APPLICATION! I discover this on my own through SDGE and the inspectors, with no help from ESP. It is now August. No wonder they could not find the inspection reports. SDGE says the entire application needs to be resubmitted. Elena is no more responsive than anyone else has been, but at least makes good on the promised reimbursement. - Eventually, I am connected to Adriana, who is the utilities coordinator. She resubmits the application and gives me instructions for fast tracking the application with SDGE. It is now mid September. - The photos are rejected by SDGE, because of a safety placard placement. Adriana tells me SDGE is has never rejected an application over the placard, but I have heard EDP blame SDGE for their mistakes too many times before. I instead suspect that ESP simply did not place the placard properly. ESP now has to send a tech to replace, which takes nearly 2 weeks. - Adriana tells me she would resend the photos once the panel has been moved, then PTO will come in 1-3 business days. Over a week goes by and I hear nothing. After reaching out yet again, she now tells me the photos the tech took are not good enough because the placard text cannot be read, so I have to take another photo. After close inspection, I determine that SDGE has a point, as the text is printed so poorly that it is barely readable up close let alone in a photo. Again, this seems like sloppy work from ESP. However, I am able to get a close enough photo with some slight photo editing to make the text more readable. - SDGE finally grants the permission to operate on Oct 26. My solar panels, unused on my roof for 14 months, are finally turned on! So I can finally be rid of ESP now? Were that I so fortunate. The solar panels are supposed to power two separate homes. But looking at the usage, the solar only applies to one. I call SDGE, and I am told that ESP should have filed a net metering aggregation application. They never did. So now the solar energy is not being aggregated correctly, complicating the billing and usage across the two homes. - Over the next 2 days, I call ESP and am told that it will be dealt with urgently. Instead, I receive no updates at all and am ignored. I am told I will receive a call back by EOD, I don't. I call back and am now told I'll receive a call tomorrow. So I have no idea if and when ESP will fix the issue, So 19 months later and I am at least receiving some of the benefit of solar, but my project is still incomplete. At literally every single step of the process ESP managed to screw up. They were sloppy, mismanaged, and unresponsive, and consistently blamed SDGE and outside contractors for their own failures. I had to be my own staunch advocate to get ANYONE at this company to take any action at all. Do not make the same mistake I did, look elsewhere for your solar project.

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While the benefits of having solar panels are good the sub-contractor they hire to install them are horrible… they came to my house stole my some property after reporting it there was no follow up or items returned or refunded what I lost!!!! GET ANOTHER SOLAR PANELS COMPANY

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Don’t do business with this company poor customer service they want me to contact SCE to have the system turned on been making payments for roof ornaments customers should file a class action lawsuit against this bogus company

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All projects must start off with communication, unfortunately for ESP, the company does not train their employees to have great communication skills. In addition, employees must realize that they have a job because of us the customers. Finally I was furtunated to be dealing with ESP Customer Advocate, Gayla Dempsey. Project ran smooth and I was kept inform of the progress. The installation crew that came out to our house, they were superb, friendly and knowledgeable. The job was done perfectly. If ESP cleans up their communication issues, it's can be a great company.

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Our solar installation was excellent and the installers were extremely knowledgeable. From the beginning of the process each rep was transparent and the communication has been consistently helpful. It allowed for autonomy on my project. I'm very grateful and appreciative for the easy and exciting experience of going solar with ESP. Highly recommend.

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