Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/24/2024

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I paid Elevated Independent Energy $16304.38 on 4/17/2024 to install a Tesla Powerwall 3 and 24 solar panels. They didn't do any work at my residence until June 24, 2024. Now, the work seems to be completed except that I am restricted from selling any excess energy back to the grid for reasons unknown to me. I have made repeated efforts to contact the company for resolution and they simply don't answer my calls. I do have a call log to verify this.I have talked to Mountain View Electric and they suggested that I contact the BBB.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 09/25/2024

  Hello BBB representatives,

  Thank you for bringing this complaint to our attention. I am happy to provide additional details and context regarding this complaint.
  We entered into a contract with *** ***** on April 16 2024. The contract was for a ** system upgrade and a new home energy storage solution. As *** outlined in his compliant, this included a new Tesla Powerwall 3 and 24 solar panels. Our process as a solar ** contractor is as follows: 

  1. We perform a site survey to determine what systems are existing both electrically and structurally.

  2. We use the information gathered during the site survey to submit a design request from a third party design and engineering team.

  3. Once the design/engineering is complete we will submit the permit application including the planset/design packet to the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ aka Building Department). In this case it is **************************** Department (*****). Parallel to this, we must also apply with the Electric Utility for Interconnection. We call this an Interconnection Application (IA). In this case it is ********************************** (****).

  4. Once the permit has been received we procure the materials, schedule the installation team, and perform the work. Again, parallel to that we must receive a Notice To Proceed or Construction Approval from the Utility.

  5. Once the install is complete we coordinate with the *** to perform a final inspection. Once the inspection has been approved we send that Proof of Final Inspection to the Utility for PTO (Permission to Operate).

  6. From there the customer is able to energize their system and begin to offset their electrical usage.

  Obviously there is a lot of front-end preparation for these types of projects. Each Utility and AHJ that we operate within has unique requirements, submittals processes, and timelines for review and approvals. Due to these variables and unforeseen hurdles, we do not guarantee timelines as there is simply too many variables that are out of our control. I have done my best to outline the timeline of events that have led to our current place in the process.

  4/16/24: Contract signed

  5/6/24: Our former Project Manager called customer to provide update.

  5/10/24: Initial design/engineering planset received

  5/12/24(?): Permit application originally submitted to ***** (Date is unsure as our Project Manager at that time is no longer with us and did not record this action in our software. Our current PM looked into this in the ***** portal and it does not show record of that application, currently, yet it was there previously)

  5/15/24: Our former Project Manager called customer to provide update.

  5/30/24: Interconnection application signed by customer and submitted to ****

  6/14/24: Revisions on IA requested by ****. Revisions made and returned to ****

  6/20/24: Authorization Letter from MVEA received.

  6/24/24 - 7/2/24: Install team performs work as agreed upon in the Contract

  8/2/24: Our current PM attempts to call in the final inspection with ***** only to find out that the solar application had not yet been approved.

  8/7/24: Project Manager calls customer to update him on the status of the project.

  8/9/24: Revisions requested by *****. Revisions made and resubmitted. Updated customer.

  8/16/24: ***** cancels our registration/licensure as our Insurance coverage had renewed and they requested a new Certificate of Insurance. An updated COI was issued and provided to *****. ***** denied our *** as their requirements had changed and our provider does not provide the requested coverage type (Deduction In Coverage clause). We filed an extension for our existing registration/licensure and was approved until 9/9/24. Updated customer regarding the status of his project.

  8/20/24: ***** requests additional revisions to our design/engineering planset that was submitted for the permit.

  8/23/24: ***** requests additional revisions for existing application AND requests an additional permit that was not included in the original submittal

  8/26/24: ***** requests additional documentation and UL listings for the mounting type for this ** system. Updated Customer regarding the status of his project.

  8/27/24: Additional documentation and UL listing provided to *****. Emailed plan reviewer for assistance in finalizing the application and receiving permit.

  8/28/24: Plan reviewer from ***** requesting additional information regarding the second permit that was required and applied for on 8/23.

  9/9/24: Our Technical Director confirmed the requested corrections have been made to the submittal packet for permitting and resubmitted.

  9/12/24: License extension expired. Our PM made multiple calls to ***** to request 3 week extension to registration/licensure.

  9/13/24: Finally able to contact Licensing Director at ***** to request additional extension via voicemail. Did not receive call back. Later recieved call and extension was approved until 10/16.

  9/16/24: Was informed by plan reviewer at ***** that our permit application from May was never moved past "Intake" status with ***** and was then denied to the license and insurance lapse. Confirmed with Plan Reviewer that our submittal packet is complete and was resubmitted.

  9/25/24: TODAY - still waiting on plan review and permit issuance from *****.

  As you can see, it has been incredibly difficult to work with ***** as they have not given us clear direction or assistance with our permit submittals and did not inform us when the original submittal in May was kicked out of the review queue. Due to these delays and issues with ***** we are not continuing work within their service territory. Another underlying issue that has caused significant setbacks was our previous Project Managers negligence and lack of reputable record keeping. He had verbally confirmed that the permit had been issued in early June but we cannot find record of that issuance. He left the company on 7/8/24 and our new PM started on 7/22/24. This gap in project management led to further delays and poor communication with our customer. We had another staffing change as our previous Technical Director (in charge of design, engineering, and QA/QC oversight) moved to a different position within our company and started to hand off his responsibilities to our current Technical Director who started on 8/26/24. 

  As a small company that prides itself on integrity and performing these services to the highest quality standard, we are very unhappy with how this project has blown up into such a headache for our customer. We have had multiple conversations within our team on how to move forward and how to learn from this difficult situation. We have done our best to keep our customer updated to the status of all things through phone calls and emails. We will continue to work with ***** to settle any and all issues so that we can get our final inspection passed and energize the ** and Energy Storage system for our customer and fulfill the Scope of Work as outlined in our Contract.

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/25/2024

   
  Complaint: 22330733
  
  I am rejecting this response because:I disagree with some of what Elevated Independent Energy (EIE) aka: the business has stated in their response to my complaint

  All of what they wrote up until is just them stating that they are doing the necessary leg work to commence on my property. Please take notice that the very first communication they had with me after accepting my $16,304.38 was three weeks later on May 6th. This was after I had called them and left messages. On 5/3 I left a message for ***** Judson, who claims to be the owner of the business.. He did not return that call. Again on 5/6 I called ****. When I got no answer, I called **** ******* the salesman. Mr. ******* passed my message of dissatisfaction on to someone and ultimately I received a call from ***** *******. He told me that **** ****** was on vacation and that he would be my contact going forward. He had no answer for my question as to why I had not heard a peep out of the company since they took my money three weeks earlier. When I asked him of the status of my project he told me that they were waiting on permitting. He told me that he would be in touch with me by Wednesday the 8th. That never happened and I tried to call ***** on the 9th and left a message. On May 10 I again called ***** ******* and got no answer and left another message. I then tried **** ******** number who also didn't answer. I left a message for **** also before calling **** *******. He didn't have any answers but at least he would answer his phone. On 5/13 I finally received a call from ***** ******* telling me that the plans were back from Engineering so we are now waiting for ******************* to sign off.and that we are number 36 in the queue. He asked me when in June my calendar was open to begin work. I told him the 3rd would be fine. He said that the earliest they could begin would be the 24th. Why did he even ask about what date would work for me?  On 5/15 contrary to the Business' claim that the former project manager, ***** ******* called me is inaccurate.  However, **** ****** called me and asked for our account number with Mountain View Electric. After this, the physical on site work was done beginning 6/24.the project took a few days to accomplish and several days later, ******* the installer told me that that someone would be coming back out to address the wind whistling issue and to make some settings changes with the Powerwall. I called ***** ******* on 7/02 and got no answer. On 7/9 I called ***** ******* again and once again I got no response. On 7/25 I tried to call *******. I got no response. On 8/7 I called **** ****** and left a message. A few minutes later **** called me and said that she was recently hired by ***, and that she would be my contact going forward.She also told me that my project was currently in the permitting phase. No word as to how my project was nearly complete sans the proper permitting. She promised me that she would keep me in the loop going forward. On 8/9 **** called me to tell me that there was no news. At least she called me when she said that she would. On 9/6 I called **** for an update. She said that we are still in the permitting process, and that she had last spoken with Regional last week. On 9/11 I called **** and got no response. I left a message requesting she call me back. It never happened. on 9/17 I called **** and she told me that she would call me back tomorrow after talking with Regional. Once again, it never happened.On 9/19 I called ****. She didn't answer and she didn't return my call. Again on 9/20 I got no return call from ****. On 9/24 I called **** ****** and left a message. I have still not heard back from either **** or ****. .After this unsuccessful call to **** I began my complaint with the BBB.

  in closing, I would like to say that I understand that they are a young company and have met some setbacks; but as a customer who has a considerable amount of money invested, I don't think it unreasonable to expect regular communication as to my project.. They do not inspire confidence with their habits of dodging and avoiding the customer.
  

   

   

  Sincerely,
  
  *** *****

  

  Business Response

  Date: 10/24/2024

  Hello ***,

  We appreciate you filing this complaint as it gives us an opportunity to address the issue and learn from this situation. We are a small company with limited resources and work hard to provide a quality service to our customers. We take this feedback seriously and use it to learn and grow in order to provide our future customers a better experience.

  As we have recently communicated, the permit with **************************** Department has finally been approved after much back and forth with the them. We have the final inspection scheduled for 10/24. Once this inspection is completed, we will provide Proof of the Final Insepection to ********************************** (****). Once **** have that confirmation, they will follow up to provide Permission to Operate (PTO). This is the last approval required in order to energize the solar PV system. 

  We look forward to finalizing everything for you and appreciate your patience throughout this process. You have our phone number and email so please continue to reach out with any questions. Thanks.