Consumer complaint received 2024-03-30 00:00:00
Product: Debt collection — Other debt
Issue: False statements or representation — Attempted to collect wrong amount
Company: Solar Mosaic LLC
State: TX

Complaint narrative:
PREDATORY LENDING, PREDATORY SALES, AND ELDER ABUSE : 30 % TAX CREDIT FORCED UPON ME BY BOTH THE SELLER AND THE LENDER WITHOUT MY FULL UNDERSTANDING. 
A FAIR RESOLVE TO THIS PROBLEM Is for Solar Mosaic Finance, XXXX XXXX, and XXXX XXXX to take responsibility for misrepresenting the federal tax credit and remove {$15000.00} from my contract price. I have spoken to Mosaic and XXXX several times and submitted written documentation about my experience. I am willing to pay what I agreed to when the salesperson was in my home. I have stopped payment to Solar Mosaic and they have begun reporting the nonpayment to various credit agencies. 
Solar Mosaic has a working relationship with XXXX XXXX and I believe this to be a pattern between them. Solar Mosaic is complicit in misleading me and engaging in predatory lending. I was not familiar with the federal tax credit and Mosaic did not highlight the credit during the loan qualification process. To me, this is a classic bait-and-switch. I am 67 years of age and retired. The salesperson, XXXX XXXX emphatically, assured me I would get the 30 % tax credit. He explained that I would then use that money to pay down my loan thus maintaining the low monthly payment that the finance company is starting me out with. 
I signed the XXXX Contract with XXXX XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX the materials were delivered to my home on XX/XX/XXXX, and on the third day after signing the contract the solar panels were installed WITHOUT A PERMIT. 
XXXX XXXX, NOR SOLAR MOSAIC FINANCIAL SUGGESTED THAT I SPEAK WITH A TAX PROFESSIONAL ABOUT THE TAX CREDIT AND HOW IT WORKS. XXXX did not provide me with a Contract or my 3-day Right to Cancel. Had I received my CONTRACT I WOULD HAVE READ IT MORE THROUGHLY STILL WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO CANCEL. HOWEVER, I DID NOT RECEIVE MY CONTRACT UNTIL XXXX OF XXXX. And, even so, the panels had already been installed on the third day. And, now Mosaic is sending me emails reminding me to file my taxes with the IRS to get the tax credit. Why didnt Solar Mosaic provide me with this information in the beginning? 
I fell into the trap with XXXX XXXX the third-party Installer. I learned that XXXX XXXX is working in concert with XXXX XXXX. The fact that I was dealing with two companies was not disclosed at the point of sale. After signing the Contract everything went wrong. I was forced to communicate with XXXX XXXX via email, text, and voicemail. Although XXXX says they have nothing to do with XXXX XXXX, and that he is an independent salesperson with his own company, XXXX XXXX who contracts XXXX to install solar panel systems after he sells them. But, XXXX XXXX is the Sales Agent listed on XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. So, if he is the Authorized Sales Agent listed on the Contract does that make him a binding partner with XXXX XXXX? On another note, XXXX has no checks and balances in place to verify customer expectations established by the sales representative. There is no handoff process. 
I was told by XXXX XXXX XXXX that per XXXX XXXX department since I signed the contract I must have read it and they did not have to provide me with a copy of the contract or the 3-Day Notice of Right to Cancel. It is obvious to me that both XXXX and Mosaic Financial know something that I do not. I received a welcome call from Solar Mosaic after the initial signing but, there was no mention of the tax credit. The call was to say welcome and thank you. This leads me to believe that the bait and switch using the tax credit is how they operate every day. 
Why isnt the price, the price? Why does the finance company get to further cement the idea that I will be able to use the tax credit to pay down my loan when they have no idea if I even qualify for the tax credit? And, if I did receive the tax credit money in my hand, why does the finance company get to dictate or strongly suggest how I spend the money? XXXX XXXX leads with the 30 % tax credit and Mosaic Financing uses the initial low payment as bait to get me to agree to pay the 30 % within 18 months. Because, of course, anyone would rather have a low payment. But, If I dont or cant pay the 30 % then the payment switches to the higher amount. So, instead of starting me at the low payment with the expectation that I will have the money to pay down my loan. 
LET THE PRICE BE THE PRICE. AND LET MY PAYMENT BE MY PAYMENT. So that the payment doesnt have to balloon after 18 months. Its my right to choose when given a fair choice. No one, not XXXX XXXX, the salesperson nor Mosaic the finance company suggested that I speak to a tax professional at the point of sale. I did NOT understand the full measure of the tax credit until well after signing the Contract. 
I have since learned that the tax credit is just that a credit. If I owe money to the IRS then the credit is used to pay what I owe. And, since I am retired and rarely owe taxes I will never get any money in my hand. Using the tax credit to pay down the loan was never a real option for me and it never should have been presented as such. There is so much wrong with the way these people are consciously doing business. Not to mention Elder Abuse. 
There are three companies tied to my complaint. XXXX. XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Mosaic Solar Finance XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX WHAT IVE DONE TO TRY AND RESOLVE THE ISSUE : The process that began on XX/XX/XXXX, and was completed on XX/XX/XXXX. At the end of XXXX, I was still pulling teeth to get XXXX to complete the project. I had to get help from a Solar Energy Education Advocate to get XXXX to speak with me. We had a few conference calls in XXXX with XXXX XXXX to discuss everything that had happened including the promise of the tax credit and the {$1000.00} referral fee for referring XXXX XXXX promised by XXXX XXXX. I have also provided several written documentation of my experience to both XXXX XXXX and Mosaic. The process was difficult and both Mosaic and XXXX refused to talk about the tax credit.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation