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4.8

Overall Score

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LAST UPDATED: April 29th, 2021
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Company out of business.

As of August 2020, RGS Energy has ceased all operations and has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. To learn more about the top solar companies, visit our solar home page.

Founded in 1978, RGS Energy is a publicly traded company that provides residential and commercial solar solutions. Since its opening, the company has installed over 25,000 solar systems on homes, businesses, and schools, totaling more than 260 MW. RGS currently operates in 10 states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Hawaii (under the name Sunetric).

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The Good

  • Quick Installations
  • Variety of Payment Options
  • Online Monitoring
  • Customer Service

Quick Installations

RGS Energy does a good job of pushing the installation process along. After the initial consultation, RGS Energy works with its inspectors and installation team to get the system design and permitting taken care of. After the permits are squared away (which requires legal authorization in order to proceed), RGS gets the installation done quickly.

Variety of Payment Options

RGS Energy offers several payment options, including outright purchase, loan, lease, and PPA. With so many ways to pay for a system, customers have the ability to find an option that works well for them and their individual needs. RGS provides in-house financing for customers interested in getting a loan.

Online Monitoring

RGS Energy offers online monitoring to help its customers stay up-to-date with their solar system and its performance.

Customer Service

Customer service is a priority for RGS Energy. Many RGS customers have said that they felt the company listened to their concerns and made an honest effort to address and improve them. 

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The Bad

  • Outsourced Installations
  • Limited Warranty

Outsourced Installations

RGS Energy subcontracts most of its installations. This can be problematic because it might result in miscommunication, inconsistent service, or lower quality work. Additionally, it's unclear which company you should contact-RGS or the installation crew-in the event of an issue with the system.

Limited Warranty

Although RGS Energy's systems comes with a 25-year warranty, it is a limited warranty that only covers the production of the panels. If there is an accident or something goes wrong with the equipment, it won't be covered under the warranty.

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The Bottom Line

RGS Energy is an established solar company with nearly 40 years of experience. The company is available in 10 states and offers a variety of payment options, online monitoring, and quality customer service. However, RGS outsources most of its installations and has a limited warranty.

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Star Rating

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2.8

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29 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

31%

4 grade

14%

3 grade

0%

2 grade

14%

1 grade

41%

Sentiment Criteria

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John A. Pastina Jr. Concord, NH

My solar panels were installed in December 2016. The installation was smooth and wrinkle free. Contractors were polite, professional and respectful of my home and family. The process from sales to going live took longer than anticipated. I had to wait a month for my utility to approve my system because the contractor filled the paper work incorrectly. The system is producing at or slightly higher than the original estimate. The system will pay for itself in about 7 to 8 years. Great product and monitoring. I have not had to interact with customer service as I have had no problems. Would reccomned

6 years ago

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VIRGINIA LEE West Greenwich, RI

We had our PV panels installed early spring.They were very professional ,polite,and respectful. We loved the fact that RGS took care of all permitting from the town and utility.. the time line that was given to us from the beginning worked out to be very precise.After we were up and running for several weeks and we received our first bill I felt it was not working right we made 1 phone call they came the next day found the problem and fixed it.The system has been working great since then. We love not having a electric bill and also love the fact we are helping the environment!!

7 years ago

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Sue Reilly Clinton, CT

We have had our solar panels for over a year and a half now and I still swear by these guys. They were friendly, professional, tidy and knowledgeable, and that applied to all 4 of them that were here. I highly recommend them. Although I haven't had any contact with them since the system went live since everything works perfectly and they educated me about the product and the web site monitoring. I could not be happier

7 years ago

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Ron Blain Walpole, MA

Although the sale through final installation took months it was well worth it. My salesman was knowledgeable and helpful. There was a mix-up with the product (ordered panels were not available) and number of panels that would fit on my roof but I was able to negotiate a better price and able to get higher rated panels for just a wee bit more money. The installation was impeccably done and not so much as a nail was left on my lawn. It was also quickly done. The product is outstanding and I'm generating more KW than expected. The company explained everything every step of the way and did all the paperwork including the state rebate forms which they netted from my sales price. My experience with customer service after installation was also good. I highly recommend this company.

7 years ago

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Jim East Greenwich, RI

RGS finished our install 6 months ago and we are more than pleased with everyone involved. The Sales consultant was easy to work with and applied no pressure at any time. We were most impressed that he followed the entire project from beginning to install. He also called a month ago to see if we were happy and have any questions. The install team was great. Each day when they left the property was spotless. The entire process was professional. Thanks RGS for a great experience.

7 years ago

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Linnea Leeming Waban, MA

We inquired into getting solar panels when a neighboring town advertised that they were going solar. Since we were on the townline, RGS Energy was happy to accommodate us within its promotion. We were impressed with the enthusiasm for what we would be getting out of it and they came up with a design configuration that far exceeded our expectations. The installation crew was fabulous, even holding off a weekend and one day for us to get a new roof installed, which we needed first. They were thorough and attentive to detail. Thet came back for the meter on time and handled all the permits. We got our rebate immediately. We were up and running before we knew it. We highly recommend this company. We had virtually no problems from design through financing. The online site where we can watch our benefits of the array daily is awesome, too. RGS Energy should be #1 on this list.

7 years ago

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STEVE SEVITS Craryville, NY

The solar installation by RGS does everything they said it would. There's no controlling the weather so it doesn't always yield as much KWHR as we'd like. The RGS people have been good and they provided ongoing computer analysis of solar performance at no additional cost.

6 years ago

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Elizabeth Alice Sargent Saint Johnsbury, VT

We have had our panels on our barn roof for over one year, the installation was done like clock-work, the staff were wonderful and accommodating. The first winter our bills were very minimal and now after one full year, we are coming in at zero in bills and Vermont weather can be tough! Very pleased and highly recommend!

7 years ago

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Donald Fahrney Fresno, CA

I have a 48 panel system installed 3 years ago with zero issues. They did what they said they would do and in a timely manor. Overall super happy with the performance of the system and workmanship. Great Job!

6 years ago

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Greg Pulido Upland, CA

no company is perfect, they don't pretend to be, honesty in all aspect is a primary criteria for me, i rather her a bad truth than a fantastic lie. RGS comes through when it matters.

6 years ago

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Bruce Berger Rosamond, CA

Honest and helped us 'overbuild' our project to code due to future planned projects here. Installers were great as well. Works just like we expected. It has been 2 years with no problems.

6 years ago

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Steve Hart

Steve Hart Fort Bragg CA..Our 36 PV panel system was completed and placed into service on 11/2/09. For the first five years RGSEnergy provided good service. Made my third email request to RGSEnergy for service on 4/19/17 A second request for service was placed by email on 3/8/17, but no response was received. We currently have three solar panels that aren't producing power, and we are in need of service. One of the three panels has been out of service since August 2015 and another since December 2016. This outage is resulting in a lose of eight+ percent of production capacity. We asked Customer Service to make arrangement to provide needed service, but no service has been provided as of this date, 6/27/17.

6 years ago

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Rgl Fresno, CA

RGS was referred to us by a friend as a top co, only they left the state and are now in Colorado. Our solar system does not work and they came out, for $350., and said there are issues with the panels as well as with the installation. They said that they would not repair them until we first paid the $350. Service charge. They said they would then repair them and referred us to their customer service. Their customer service ? has not responded to repeated texts and messages left on the phone number they asked us to call. We are extremely disappointed in their product and lack of supposed customer service. We are elderly people on a fixed income, we feel betrayed and disappointed in what we thought was a “good” company.

4 years ago

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Dave Los Angeles, CA

RGS energy is the worst company my wife and I have ever worked with...PERIOD! The sales pitch is strong and convincing, over promising. Once you sign all the problems begin. They out source all the work to shady independent contractors. When signing up, they told us we would not need to do anything with our existing electrical panel. Wrong! LADWP made us upgrade and move the entire unit at a cost of $6000. The contract stated they to bury the electrical conduit. I got home from work and they had bolted it to my cinderblock wall. Further, they damaged newly done landscaping and sprinkler lines, killing many plants. Early this year during the heavy rain in Los Angeles, we noticed leaks and damage to our ceilings. Our roof is only 4 years old. Contacted our original roofer and he completed and extensive report with all the poor workmanship RGS performed. RGS improperly installed the panels with no rain protection on the bolting to save money. I have spent $15,000 to have their work redone. Filed a formal complaint with the CA State Contractors Board, filed a claim on their bond, and have arbitration next month. Avoid this company, they outsource to companies that bid the cheapest and the end product is a disaster. Further, our electric bill does not show the decrease we were promised in the written contract. ***Update March 2018*** So we won the $15,000 max settlement after spending more time and money in CA arbitration after a long fight. The CA department of consumer affairs and the arbitrator found in our favor. Although getting back the money is one thing, the costs far exceeded $15K due to RGS out sourcing ALL of their work to independent contractors. We will be pursuing complaints against the install and roofing companies. RGS energy would not settle with us, driving this to arbitration despite our hired expert. Avoid this company at all costs. Your house may be damaged and depending on what state you live in there may be a cap on the money you can get back after a year of battle!

6 years ago

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Aimee Montroy Woodacre, CA

If zero stars was an option I would give them zero stars.They came to my home and evaluated my roof for solar panels. They let me know that my roof had at least another 10 to 20 years left and proceeded to install solar panels. When the rains came three months later and the roof started leaking the first thing my contractor noticed was that many of the solar panel attachment points were not in studs/stringers but in fact there were screw holes right through the roof/ceiling. In addition, many parts of the roof had bad or spongie decking. None of this happened in three months. My belief is that they wanted to put up a $35,000 system and didn’t care to let me know that I need a new roof first because they thought that that might be where I put my first $35,000. I did end up having to remove the solar panels $5000, replace decking and put on a new roof.$20,000. I do not recommend our RGS. When I contacted them three months after installation to let them know our findings they ignored me.

6 years ago

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Robert C Franks Fresno, CA

We live in Fresno, California's Central Valley that has experienced a 6-year drought. In September 2013, RGS installed a 20-panel solar system. In February, 2017, after our first significant rain in those 6 years, we discovered a roof leak and subsequent ceiling water damage caused by cracked caulking around a roof jack located approximately 6" from the RGS solar panel system. We know this to be true as it was reported by a 3rd party inspector hired by RGS. The inspector resealed the area around the leak and we have had no further leaks. We sought repair of our ceiling from RGS in February. RGS denied our request for ceiling repairs taking until June 2017 to make that decision. RGS offers only a 1-year warrantee that is responsible for installation damage within 24 inches of their panels. Bottom line: no rain, no warrantee.

6 years ago

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Scott Oneil CA

RGS Energy bought the company that did solar installation for our complex. In October 2015 they acknowledged that they owe us warranty service for defective inverters. On February 4 of last year, we got this in e-mail from them: "Just so you are aware RGS has declined to perform any service in the complex over there so you are going to need to find a local installer to come and do the swap for you. " Yes. "Declined." They understand that they owe us warranty service. They just aren't going to provide it. It's been 16 months since then, and while after untold yelling and screaming a few homes were fixed, they stopped doing that work about a year ago before most were done. (I, personally, was lucky.) Most still have not been fixed. Most installations are generating no power, some going back to 2014. tl;dr: Just because RGS understands that they owe you warranty service doesn't mean they'll actually furnish it. This is not a company to work with.

6 years ago

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Steven Dalpe Plymouth, NH

RGS built a system for my home and it does not come close to covering my power needs. Very frustrating when others around me have not paid and electric invoice in many years. They should standup to the plate and get the system running to where is should be. Spoke and Emailed the company. Nothing has happened. I believe they think the problem is going to go away !!!!

6 years ago

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Kathy Oakhurst, CA

RGS was a valuable resource during installation period (unfortunately the person who was the sale contact has subsequently left the company). He was able to answer questions regarding time of use billings, system sizes, roof placement, etc. that others could not. After 3 years need warranty work on 1 panel - and am currently patiently waiting and reminding RGS that it is under warranty. Spent 2 weeks leaving voice mail messages with no call back. Finally placed service request on their website (it appears that is the only way to contact customer service). RGS has acknowledged there is a problem that needs to be addressed, but they have not been able to schedule a repair. Currently on week 7 of waiting (I contact the customer service dept every 2 weeks - to not appear too pushy). I don't understand why they cannot schedule a service appt. for 1 individual panel. I would strongly suggest looking elsewhere for installation - as their warranty service is horrible. It didn't take 7 weeks to purchase and install the system - but it takes longer than that to get warranty service (and I'm still waiting).

7 years ago

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Ken Bader Cambridge, MA

In Oct. 2015, RGS installed three solar panels on my roof. The project was supposed to include registering them so that I'd receive SREC payments. On Dec. 16, RGS learned that it would have to install a meter to register the panels and billed me an additional $487.50. Rather than accepting responsibility for its failure to include the necessary meter in its work order, RGS attempted to raise the cost of the project ex post facto from $3,930,30 to $4,417.80. It's this kind of practice that recently caused the Better Business Bureau to revoke its accreditation of RGS. Unless you enjoy being treated the way I have described, I suggest you steer clear of this company.

7 years ago

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Rich, Granby, CT Granby, CT

Two years after installation my roof was damaged by 2 inch hail. I have trying to get RGS to remove system so that a new roof can be installed. I am getting nowhere talking to RGS. Straight out---I have been lied to! they tell me a permit is going to be applied for with local building inspector on a specified date, and a week later no permit application. I leave phone messages looking for reply as to what is happening. I get no return call.

4 years ago

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Tony Bergin

RGS Energy responded quickly to my questions on monitoring. The installers were great and very knowledgeable. I highly recommend their installers.

6 years ago

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Stan Tittle San Francisco, CA

Took to long to get warranty service when needed. Did not have monitoring for about 3 months due to not having anyone that could install cell meters. Once they install the system its up to the leaseing company to send someone to for repairs. Poor customer service

6 years ago

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Steve Morin Providence, RI

Their products have been fine so far, but the communication, coordination, and support leading up to and during installation was pretty awful. I attribute it to a large company with no strong local presence and an overworked coordinator how was pleasant enough.

8 years ago

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Cheri Granville, MA

RGS was great when we purchased our system but our system is been down now for months and we have made about 10 calls to try and obtain service and nobody has returned our phone calls. Meanwhile our soda solar panels which we paid $30,000 for are not reporting the energy that they are generating. I do not recommend this company!

4 years ago

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Bruce Arthur

We had 24 panels installed 6 years ago. Since then we have had 11 inverters replaced and now have 5 more needing replacement. We have been waiting 2 ½ months to receive the replacement inverters. As of yet we have been giving only excuses for the delay. We are loosing confidence with RGS.

6 years ago

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Jennifer Sanchez Fresno, CA

Numerous problems with system not responding during last 4 years. Esteban who is technical support is rude and supervisor never calls you back. Never would use them again.

5 years ago

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IBRAHIM BADR Millbury, MA

Updated info regarding my first review. RGS returned my deposit back and the issue was resolved.

6 years ago

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Shirl Dunkin Castro Valley, CA

Solar has been down for 3 weeks now no service they got there $$$$$$

7 years ago