A dispute posted online by a California tenant centers on a PG&E bill that allegedly jumped from roughly $75 to more than $200 after a landlord removed solar-related credits and added extra charges.<\/p>\n
The dispute raises a thorny question for renters: When rooftop solar lowers a bill, who actually gets the benefit if the utility account is in the landlord’s name?<\/p>\n
Here’s what to know<\/p>\n
The complaint appeared in a post<\/a> on Reddit, where the renter said their California home is on PG&E and uses a NEM 2.0 solar setup.<\/p>\n The poster described<\/a> the issue this way: “He’s taking the credits we are given for exports, and adding it to the bill.”<\/p>\n To show how that worked, the renter said<\/a> a statement listing 300 kilowatt-hours imported and 200 exported was then recalculated by the landlord, who added “200 kWH * a base rate of .40 cents per kWH = 80 dollars” back onto the amount due.<\/p>\n Commenters zeroed in on the lease language, which the tenant said reads only: “For electricity use (there is no gas), with Solar on the roof, PG&E charges the provider, the Landlord, and then the Landlord passes the monthly utility charge on to the Tenant.”<\/p>\n Several readers said that sounded like the landlord should pass along the bill itself, rather than tack on a separate amount connected to solar generation.<\/p>\n Going solar is one of the best ways to save money on home energy, and homeowners who want to explore the option can use EnergySage<\/a> to get free solar installation estimates and compare quotes.<\/p>\n More background<\/p>\n One commenter wrote<\/a>, “I would interpret that as you pay the landlord exactly what he pays PG&E. If he intended to charge a premium over the bill to recover the cost of solar (which does significantly reduce the bill) it should be explicitly stated.”<\/p>\n Landlords across the country have been known to prevent tenants from adopting money-saving lifestyle changes, including gardening and hanging clotheslines to dry their laundry.<\/p>\n Solar can become another version of that same problem when the equipment is already in place, but the savings do not actually reach the person paying the bill.<\/p>\n What can be done?<\/p>\n Saving the original utility bill, the edited version, and the lease language could help if a tenants’ rights organization, small claims court, or the utility company needs to review the charges.<\/p>\n As one commenter put<\/a> it: “This is by far the best answer \u2014 seek assistance from an organization that exists specifically to assist folks in situations like yours (landlord <> tenant disputes). Local rules can vary, and getting local assistance is likely to be helpful.”<\/p>\n One commenter wrote<\/a>, “Talk to a tenants rights organization. That sounds suspicious.”<\/p>\n For readers who control their own roof, EnergySage’s solar map<\/a> shows the average cost of a home solar panel system on a state-by-state level, along with solar incentives available in each state. Together, those tools can help people get the best price for rooftop solar panels and access available incentives.<\/p>\n EnergySage’s free services can also make the shopping process less intimidating. With EnergySage’s help, the average person can save up to $10,000 on solar purchases and installations.<\/p>\n Adding battery storage to a solar setup is one of the best ways to protect your home during outages, save money on energy, and go off-grid. Readers interested in backup power can also explore EnergySage<\/a> for information about home battery storage options, including competitive installation estimates.<\/p>\n Where can I learn more?<\/p>\n The bigger issue, especially in California, is this: Who gets the savings when solar panels lower a utility bill?<\/p>\n The articles here show how PG&E credit rules, local relief efforts, renter access policies, and bill-saving programs can shape whether those savings actually reach the household paying for power.<\/p>\n \u2022 In California, PG&E threatened to slash credits by 75%<\/a> when one homeowner expanded solar.<\/p>\n \u2022 A California city is turning rooftop solar into relief<\/a> for low-income households facing higher bills.<\/p>\n \u2022 In Maine, lawmakers moved to provide renters access<\/a> to plug-in solar panels.<\/p>\n \u2022 PG&E says one free program<\/a> can cut bills by $350.<\/p>\n \u2022 In Florida, rooftop panels turned an $800 power bill<\/a> into a $300 credit.<\/p>\n Utility rules and housing arrangements can dramatically affect where solar savings end up. That same tension is at the heart of this renter’s dispute.<\/p>\n Get TCD’s free newsletters<\/a> for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A dispute posted online by a California tenant centers on a PG&E bill that allegedly jumped from roughly…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":456962,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[7,9,8,152901,3891,3604,8304],"class_list":["post-456961","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-california","tag-california","tag-california-headlines","tag-california-news","tag-energysage","tag-landlord","tag-pge","tag-solar"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/456961","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=456961"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/456961\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/456962"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=456961"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=456961"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=456961"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}