Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Arcadia Power, Inc.'s headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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  Arcadia Power, Inc.

  Washington, DC 20037-1148

  
• 

  Arcadia Power, Inc.

  555 11th St NW Fl 4 Washington, DC 20004-1326

  

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:12/01/2022

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  My wife signed us up for the community solar program and enrolled us in the auto-pay feature. We were informed that the solar savings were pending so we never received any savings from that. However, the real complaint that I have is that auto-pay was abruptly turned off and our payment to Ameren was late since Arcadia did not handle their portion of the payment. Now I see no way of removing us from auto-pay online and have no way of knowing if it will or will not attempt to double bill us in the future. Paying us for any late fees sounds appropriate given that your auto-pay did not work! Also since your auto-pay feature did not work, we wish to be removed from it.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2022

  Thank you for bringing *****’s complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia Auto-Pay works, and how that program depends on the timely manner through which we would receive their billing information from ******. 
  

  It appears that multiple accounts have been set up related to *****' account. The account under ***************************** is considered incomplete as it was never enrolled in our Auto-Pay program and has not had a payment method on file for it. 
  

  We did locate an account under the name ********************* with the email address ******************* on file for the same address. That account was set up on 7/12/2022 and enrolled in our Auto-Pay program as of 7/13/2022. Through our Auto-Pay program, we are set to manage monthly billing as communicated to us from ******. 
  

  Regarding automatic payments with ******, we would be unable to turn that setting off through Arcadia but would have advised that ***** turn off that setting with ****** directly to prevent duplicate payment to their account. 
  

  Their November 2022 bill was not handled as usual through our system, due to system updates between ****** and Arcadia billing. While we are synced to receive new bills from ****** for *****' account, we did not receive any ****** bills in November to manage. 
  

  Cancellation and account updates, including getting credited for any late payment on the account, can be requested through email or phone call with Arcadias support team.
  

  Should ***** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/17/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  I will follow up more with Arcadia based on their response.
  
  Regards,
  
  *********************
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/30/2022

  Type:Sales and Advertising 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 had no problems with this company until they switched to community solar. I then began to be billed large amounts of money between 400 and $700 monthly. This was sent as a credit to my electric company. Due to the overbilling I had an overage of $1658.48. I recently moved and closed my account with ******** **** my electric provider. I was assured by Arcadia that in closing my ******** **** account, the credit money would be returned to me. Instead, the credit was returned back to Arcadia the solar provider on November 3. I contacted Arcadia approximately one week later and they opened a ticket. I have contacted them multiple times since this time and they continue to tell me that they have not heard from their billing department as to how they can return the money to me. I am only able to contact customer service and have not been provided any number or contact for the billing department to discuss this issue with them. My electric company has offered to have a three-way phone call confirming that they sent the money back to Arcadia, and has even suggested that I file a police report for the release of the records including account information to where my money was sent to. I am hoping that Arcadia can refund me the $1658.48 that is owed to me.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2022

  Thank you for bringing ****** complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia Community Solar works when a member moves with a credit balance remaining on their utility profile. 
  

  ***** signed up for Arcadia on 9/9/2019 and enrolled in our Auto-Pay program for ************************************************ on 12/10/2019. Later, they moved to **************************************************** where we continued their Auto-Pay enrollment for that main address, along with a secondary Apartment 1 address on 2/26/2021.
  

  Community Solar credits, from their participation in Arcadias Community Solar program, began applying to their Apartment 1 billing on 9/2/2021 and for their main address, Community Solar credits began applying on 9/30/2021. 
  

  From there, ***** began receiving 100% of the total production value of their Community Solar subscription spot on their National Grid bills. Through Community Solar with Arcadia, ***** keeps 5% of the total *********************** while the remaining 95% portion is shared back with the Community Solar farm for maintenance and upkeep, and is thus billed back through Arcadia. 

  In the case that the Community Solar credit value exceeds new current charges with the utility, there would be a case where 95% of the total Community Solar credit is still shared back with the solar farm in real time, resulting in a credit balance accumulating on their National Grid bill, which is what occurred with ****** account.
  

  The Arcadia Member Experience team is not able to transfer calls to other parts of the company, including our billing team. However, we are able to escalate inquiries, such as these, to our billing team to handle over email which initially occurred on 11/14/2022. 
  

  After investigating this situation with our billing team and Community Solar team, it was determined that a refund of $1,575.56 should go back to the member.

  This is 95% of the -$1,658.48 Community Solar credit that was returned to the Community Solar farm. Because the 95% of that credit had been billed through Arcadia statements already but the corresponding 5% solar savings kept by the member had not yet been realized, that value can be refunded back to the member. 
  

  A confirmation email has been sent by our billing team on 12/12/2022 to confirm that their refund of $1,575.56 had been processed as of 12/9/2022, with an estimated arrival by 12/15/2022 to their payment method. 
  

  Should ***** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at ******************************** or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/17/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: Despite the claim that they have refunded my money, I still have not received the refund. I did reach back out asking for the confirmation that the funds were sent and asked to which account as I had two cards associated with the account. I am in hopes the funds will be returned by Monday 12/19, however as of end of business day 12/16 ( a day after they stated the funds should be returned, I have not received resolution. I have also not received the email explaining the breakdown of the resolution as indicated in the attached email. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************
  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/11/2023

  Thank you for bringing ****** complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to explain further.
  

  According to our billing team, a refund was processed with anticipated delivery by 12/15/2022. However, this refund was submitted as a check and mailed to ****** previous mailing address. Once this error was identified, the original check was returned to Arcadia and was then sent to their new mailing address, which was provided over email at that time. 
  

  On 12/30/2022, ***** responded over email to confirm that the check for the refund of $1,575.56 had been received on their end. This is 95% of the -$1,658.48 Community Solar credit that was returned to the Community Solar farm to their ******** **** bill. This communication, as well as the explanation of their refund amount, occurred within the same email thread with our billing team.
  

  Should ***** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.
  

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/29/2022

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  Hello, I have been an Arcadia customer since 2016, never had an issue with them paying my electric bill on time. Last month, my payment was not received and my utility company has sent my account to collections. Arcadia said they sent the payment (which it could be true). However, the utility company has no record for this payment. The utility company is requesting a Tracer Document so they can fix the issue a their end in case it is misplaced at LADWP. I reached out to Arcadia requesting this document and still don't get any info. In the meantime, I request an extension for the due date.The bill is for $408.61. I have called Arcadia customer service several times for 3 weeks on a row. Every representative gives me different information, i.e., the payment has been sent and cashed, the payment is an eCheck (utility company has confirmed it always is a paper check), there is no information if the payment has been cash; Arcadia doesn't send the payment directly to the utility company, my credit card does (this is no accurate, my CC has confirmed Arcadia has requested the charge), they have open a ticket with Arcadia billing dpt., etc. This interactions include a customer representative being completely rude even when I was asking basic information. Until this point, I have no answer or no "Tracer document" to provide my utility. How can this be possible. I also requested to talk to a supervisor but that is against Arcadia policy. So I have no way to find resolution to my issue. And, they all say they will call back with an update...have not received one single phone call from them. At this point, I have close my account with them and still have a ticket pending for the missing $408.61 that my utility company still needs to received. What can I do next?

  Business Response

  Date: 12/09/2022

  Thank you for bringing ***** complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia Auto-Pay membership works.
  

  **** signed up for Arcadia on 04/23/2019 and enrolled in our Auto-Pay (formerly Bill Pay) on that same day. This means that ***** LADWP bills were set to be managed through Arcadia going forward. 
  

  Our payment process involves Arcadia receiving the bill from LADWP, creating the corresponding Arcadia statement, reviewing the Arcadia statement for accuracy, issuing the Arcadia statement, withdrawing the payment three days later, and then sending that payment to LADWP to post to ****'s utility account. 
  

  A payment is sent via eCheck from Arcadia to LADWP once we have received the payment from the members banking institution. As this is a check, this step of the process can take up to 10 business days to process and post to their utility account. In this case, their payment was submitted to LADWP on 10/24/2022 and would have been expected to post no later than 11/07/2022. 
  

  We first heard from **** on 10/28/2022 to request that her account be canceled. This was handled at the time of their request. 
  

  Then, we received a several phone calls from 11/15/2022 to 11/29/2022 regarding the status of the payment in question of $413.91, $5 of which was an Arcadia membership cost and $408.91 of which was owed to LADWP for their bill covering the service period 08/16/2022 - 10/17/2022. 
  

  ****'s payment of $408.91 had not yet been posted to their LADWP account throughout the timeframe **** contacted us. Agents confirmed that the payment had not been posted to LADWP yet and explained how Arcadia makes payments to LADWP on their behalf. 
  

  We were advised that **** had contacted LADWP to follow up on this payment and discovered that the Arcadia payment still had not been received by LADWP. They consequently made a direct payment to LADWP to pay the balance. An Arcadia Member Experience agent opened a billing investigation of the situation on 11/16/2022 to locate the missing payment of $408.91 from Arcadia to LADWP.
  

  **** requested a refund of their Arcadia payment due to this missing payment to LADWP. As the payment was still in process to LADWP, we were unable to reverse it. Additionally, they were requesting a Tracer Document for this payment which we were not able to provide, but we did provide the associated eCheck number.
  

  On 11/18/2022, our billing team opened an investigation of this missing payment with our accounting team, who confirmed the eCheck sent on 10/24/2022 had not been cashed by LADWP. As a result, our billing team sent a new eCheck on 11/22/2022 to pay the $408.91 balance. 
  

  On 11/29/2022, an Arcadia supervisor called **** back as requested. They discussed the status of the ongoing billing team investigation and ****s feedback about the billing error and their experience with our Member Experience team.
  

  Our reissued payment appeared to be cashed on 11/29/2022 which means this payment should now be posted to *********** account.
  

  ****s Arcadia account remains closed as of 10/28/2022, when account closure was requested over the phone. 
  

  Should **** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ###-###-#### between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/20/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. Although, the main concern with the original complaint was about the misleading information provided by each representative. It took several calls to even get a ticket opened. Anyway, the money reached my utility company sono issues about the pending payment any longer.

  Regards,
  
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/28/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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.

  Yes had a man come stating *** ************************** owed us credits an I needed to verify information including a I D an my electric bill which he snapped picture of. He then stated he needed information to sign me up to get my credits asking Gmail account an he was setting up my portal to get my credits. As he did so an wanting me say yes to 5 questions I did then he took me portal an without giving me a chance to read hit square to enroll me. He then left. I then read an became aware was a fraud. So need to unenroll from their services an need any help you can give me.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/09/2022

  Thank you for bringing *******'s complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia memberships work.
  

  Arcadia currently has active representatives on the ground in states around the U.S. where homeowners are eligible for Community Solar. Each state has its own program and each member that signs up with Arcadia in these eligible areas has the opportunity to receive savings on their monthly utility bill. There are no sign-up or cancellation fees. The process to receive savings on their monthly utility bill is as simple as signing up with Arcadia and once their solar project starts producing power, that's when the member starts receiving savings. 
  

  Arcadia does everything it can to be clear and transparent with our members and prospective members. We are sorry to hear about *******'s experience with one of our representatives and we appreciate their feedback as were always looking for more ways to improve our member communications, as well as sign up experience. We have escalated this sales feedback to the appropriate party.
  

  ******* reached out to Arcadia over the phone on 11/28/2022 to request their account be closed. An Arcadia representative closed their Arcadia account at that time.
  

  Should ******* or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/25/2022

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  We have had Arcadia since June 2021. This is the first bill that is outrageous. We used 624 kWh of electric and the actual bill from ** ****** is $191.88 and Arcadia is attempting to charge $977.88. The ** ****** Bill lists ***** ******** ***** as our supplier and NOT Arcadia. They are fraudulently trying to charge $786 in excess of the current charges. Our bill last month was for 696 kWh and was $134 so I am not understanding this bill for $977.88 for less usage. I contacted them to adjust the bill. I contacted them to cancel my service. We do not want their service any longer. They wrote back in an email not addressing my concern of the excess charges of almost $800! They are staying we have to wait 180 days to cancel service. I never signed any paperwork that stated there was a commitment to stay with the service. It was represented that Arcadia would SAVE you at least .10 a kWh. They are charging $1.74 a kWh for Nov billing whereas the ***** **** ***** only charged 0.179 cents a kWh. I advised them I do not authorize they payment of $977.88 to be withdrawn from my bank account. I authorize $191.88 only! I am notifying my bank to NOT process any payments after paying $191.88 to Arcadia. The Better Business Bureau should look into this fraudulent practice of hiking up the electric bill by 7 times the actual price to unexpected consumers. I would like to pay the amount owed of $191.88 and cancel this service immediately. I have already contacted ********* and signed a 24 month contract as of today with ************ for 0.18 cents a kWh for supplier service to our home address starting immediately. Please let me know if I need to file in small claims court to indeed get the $786 in fraudulent charges refunded. I am dissatisfied with the customer service from this company and want all Americans to be aware of this companies fraudulent payment system. I put in writing several times to cancel service ********************* ************************************************************** ************

  Business Response

  Date: 12/09/2022

  Thank you for bringing *****'s complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia memberships work in different areas.
  

  To clarify, Arcadia is not an electric supplier, which means that we did not determine the kWh rate at which ***** was billed, nor would joining another electric suppliers service change the status of their Arcadia enrollment.
  

  ***** signed up for Arcadia, accepted our terms of service, and enrolled in our Auto-Pay program on 06/28/2021. This means that the payment of Linda's ******************* bills were set to be managed through Arcadia going forward.
  

  On 08/30/2021, ***** began receiving Community Solar savings on their monthly statements from the ******** **** * Community Solar project. The 100% Community Solar savings value is annotated as a Transfer of Net Metering Credit on their ***** ****** ****** utility bill and is not determined by a kWh rate but instead the dollar value of the production of the Community Solar farm. Through Community Solar, ***** keeps a 10% portion of the total Community Solar credit as their savings. The remaining 90% is shared back with the Community Solar farm for its maintenance and operation costs. 
  

  The 11/24/2022 statement in question has not been charged by Arcadia as a result of our ongoing communication with *****. Their payment is stopped and will not occur. Their account is closed as of 11/30/2022. 
  

  However, this immediate cancellation is an exception. The 180 day cancellation period is a standard timeline in place in Rhode Island that is necessary for processing unenrollment from a Community Solar farm administratively. This time period is outlined in the Community Solar Subscription Agreement accepted by ***** on 6/28/2021, at the time of sign up.
  

  The 11/24/2022 Arcadia statement in question did include accurate charges, which were higher than usual. *****'s 10/25/2022 ******************* bill did not include the usual Transfer of Net Metering credit, meaning that the credit value that would normally apply to that bill carried over for application to another. 
  

  *****'s 11/23/2022 ******************* bill consequently included a Transfer of Net Metering Credit of -$1,085.78 which completely covered their current usage charges with ******************* and resulted in a ************ Energy account credit balance of -$955.08 which will apply to future utility bills of Lindas to reduce the total charges. 
  

  As it is, Arcadias responsibility to ensure that 90% of the Transfer of Net Metering Credit value is shared back with the solar farm for maintenance and operation, we were set to charge for that value of $977.20 on *****'s 11/24/2022 Arcadia statement. Over time, this would work out such that the total 10% solar savings amount that ***** keeps is $108.58.
  

  Since *****'s account cancellation was processed immediately, ***** has now received $1,085 in credit from Arcadias Community Solar program for the past two months, whereas 90% of this value was not theirs to keep.
  

  Should ***** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/15/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  It was through this complaint that the company agreed that my charges were incorrect. We were also allowed to cancel within 2 business days due to envoking our rights as consumers in RI. I accept the credit of $977 on our electric account for overpayments made the past few months. 
  

  Regards,
  
  *********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/21/2022

  Type:Billing 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.

  At the end of August 2022, I contacted them to cancel my subscription service. I was told is would be done and that I could pay *** directly. However I was now recently charged by Arcadia. My *** bills have been by us directly. I contacted them about why I am still being charged and requested a refund. I was told that it takes 90 days to process. Which is ok. But I should not be charged if I am told to pay *** directly in August. Also this charge has not been applied to my current bill. My account number is ******** with **********************.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/05/2022

  Thank you for bringing ********* complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia cancellation works once a member is enrolled on a Community Solar project. 
  

  ******** signed up for Arcadia on 07/12/2022 and completed their Auto-Pay enrollment on 07/16/2022. This means that the payment of ********* ************* & ******** bills were set to be managed through Arcadia going forward. 
  

  They were enrolled in Arcadias Community Solar program on 07/22/2022, but did not begin receiving solar savings credits prior to their cancellation request being processed on 08/19/2022.
  

  Because a spot was already reserved for them on the Community Solar farm, it takes a period of 90 days to remove them from that enrollment. This 90 day cancellation period is detailed in the Community Solar terms agreed to at the time of sign-up. More information about our cancellation period is found on our *************** **********************************************************-******************************************************************- 
  

  ******** emailed in on 8/16/22 asking to cancel and requesting a refund for their Arcadia payment, as they stated they paid **** directly. An Agent replied via email on 8/18/22 confirming we can not refund as our payment already was sent to **** and inquired into why they wished to cancel. ******** did not reply and on 8/19/22 we sent ********************* email confirming their cancellation has been initiated, takes 90 days, and that they will still receive statements from Arcadia until their cancellation is complete.
  

  Jennifers Arcadia cancellation was complete as of 11/21/2022 which ended both their Community Solar and Auto-Pay enrollment. They can expect no further charges managed through Arcadia, and can resume paying ************* & ******** directly for their monthly charges. 
  

  Should ******** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/17/2022

  Type:Billing 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 began using Arcadia in May of 2022 when a salesman came my door and informed me that they would save me 10% on each energy bill and it would help support green energy. I hesitantly signed up as I wanted to save on my electricity bill and support solar power. Since the time I’ve been with Arcadia however, I have payed $371.81 more for my electricity between May-October of 2022 versus what I would have payed on my ***** statement alone. I have not saved money on a single month of being with Arcadia and even had a bill of $288.75 last month on only 365 KW/h of energy usage which was $237.74 higher than my ***** bill for the month of October. I have called to complain about this specific bill and had to call over 10 times to speak with a manager who had called me today. The manager was extremely rude and told me this is how Arcadia works and is “what I signed up for”. This is not what I signed up for at all. I was told by one representative that they could provide me with a $75 credit for my extremely large bill the month before to which I accepted even though it didn’t nearly cover the difference of what I was charged. I was told today by the manager which called me that this $75 credit could no longer be applied to my account because I have began the process of cancelling my account (which takes 90 days). I would never recommend Arcadia to another person as it would only lose them time, effort, and money dealing with a negligent business like Arcadia. I am sure that Arcadia is a scam using predatory practices to sign up customers for their “savings” in the hopes that the customers don’t check their original electricity bills and see how much they’re being overcharged.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/02/2022

  Thank you for bringing *******’s complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia memberships work in different areas.
  
  ******* signed up for their Arcadia account on 03/10/2022 and enrolled in our Auto-Pay program on 03/11/2022. From that point forward, Arcadia was set to manage the payment of their ***** charges. They were also set for future enrollment in our Community Solar program for savings on their monthly ***** bills.
  
  On 04/07/2022, ******* began receiving Community Solar credits on their ***** bills. These solar credits are visible on their ***** bills as Community Supply Generation Credits. These credits reduced and, in some cases, completely covered their ***** usage charges. It’s important to remember that these Community Supply Generation Credits are only on *******’s ***** bills because they are enrolled in Community Solar through Arcadia.
  
  Through Community Solar with Arcadia, ******* keeps a 10% portion of the total Community Supply Generation Credit value applied to their ***** bills. The remaining 90% portion is owed back to the solar farm for project operation and maintenance.
  
  This distribution of Community Solar savings occurs through the management of statements by Arcadia, as Arcadia bills back for 90% of the total credit applied to the ***** bill. 
  
  The percent of savings members get to receive from the Community Solar program, the manner through which those savings are distributed, and the 90 day cancellation period are detailed in the Community Solar terms agreed to at the time of sign-up.
  
  Rather than an additional amount having been charged, ******* has saved a total of $108.27 through Arcadia’s Community Solar program and has an excess credit balance with ***** that is completely theirs to keep for the reduction of future bills. 
  
  Though their cancellation was initiated on 11/09/2022 and the 90 day cancellation period is standard for members with Community Solar in Illinois, their Arcadia account is closed as of 11/17/2022 as the result of their conversation with a manager at Arcadia. 
  
  The $75 credit offered to ******* is available in circumstances when a member chooses to remain enrolled with Arcadia instead of proceeding with cancellation. As a result, it could not be honored after their cancellation was requested. 
  
  Should ******* or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at (**** ******** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/16/2022

  Type:Billing 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.

  This business is shady. It has been charging me exorbitant amounts of money for my electric when ***** is in fact saying I don't owe anything because I have been paying too much. But Arcadia has charged me over $700 which included a bill for $125.25 on 10/13/22, $276.07 on 11/02/22, and $390.57 All in less than in one month. Every 2 weeks I am getting higher than before bills. ***** is saying I have not used NEARLY that much electric. I called and when the rep could give me absolutely no ansers at all on why my bill is off, and she in fact said "ya, something doesn't seem right here". I then said can I please close my account out so that I can deal with NYSEG only? She tells me yes i can do that for you. She said ok its done you will receive a email confirming this. I did receive the email, but it wasn't a confirmation, it was to tell me my account won't be closed for 90 to 180 days and anything I owe monthly until then will be taken out of my account! Arcadia only provides auto pay. I knew my checking account which is linked on the autopay could not provide the money for all these random high charges, I went on their site and put my credit card on instead and removed my banking debit card. Only to find they still took the money out today! I thought to myself, how? So i went in to my Arcadia account to and sure enough my banking debit card is NOT listed as eligible for autopay . I then had to call the bank because that was an overdraft. I want this company to deactivate my account as soon as possible and stop taking money out of any account especially my banking account when I don't even have it listed as a payment option! That was on my banks advice to remove it. They cannot believe this company took it out anyways. The kicker is they billed me again for $390.00 and that will be taken out soon. Who knows when. I have been on the phone with Arcadia, *****, the bank for a week. I just want to get out of this shady company before I go broke.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/02/2022

  Thank you for bringing Melissa's complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadias Community Solar and Auto-Pay programs work.
  ******* has been enrolled in Arcadia Auto-Pay to manage their ***** bill payments since 3/18/2019. This means that each time a ***** bill is issued for their account, a corresponding Arcadia statement is created and its payment is managed. Typically, a ***** bill is issued once per month. 
  

  ***** issued several bills in quick succession for differing service periods: one on 09/29/2022 for the service period 06/11/2022 - 07/13/2022, one on 10/06/2022 for the service period 07/14/2022 - 08/10/2022, one on 10/28/2022 for the service period 08/11/2022 - 09/13/2022, and most recently, one on 11/07/2022 for the service period 09/14/2022 - 10/11/2022. 
  

  There was a period from April to July of 2022 when no ***** bills were issued, and such, ******* was not billed for several months. Since that point, ***** has been catching the bills up to current usage. In order to do this, it looks like ***** bills were issued more closely together than the usual monthly cadence. Arcadia does not have control over when ***** bills are issued. 
  

  Each of these ***** bills are associated with an Arcadia statement, those issued on 09/30/2022, 10/13/2022, 11/02/2022, and 11/17/2022 respectively. 
  

  On *******s ***** bills, a CDG Value Stack Credit is included as a credit to reduce their total utility charges. This CDG Value Stack Credit comes from Arcadias Community Solar program. Its dollar value is determined by the total production of the solar farm for the month. 
  

  Through Arcadias Community Solar program, 5% of the solar savings earned are *******'s to keep while the remaining 95% portion is owed to the solar farm for project maintenance and upkeep. This savings distribution is managed by Arcadia through the automatic payment of each ***** bill. 
  

  For the billing statements in question, the CDG Value Stack Credit that was applied exceeded the new usage charges on the ***** bill. This means that the solar production credit completely covered new ***** charges, and that a credit balance has carried over to future ***** bills as a result. It is still Arcadias responsibility in this case to make sure that 95% of the solar production credit value is shared back with the solar farm, which is the reason that ******* still had charges due to Arcadia.
  

  Arcadia cancellation with Community Solar does take a 90 day period to complete due to the time it takes to process unenrollment from the solar farm administratively. Their cancellation process began on 11/12/2022 as requested. This 90 day cancellation period is outlined in the Community Solar agreement and on our support site here: ****************************************************************************************************************************** 
  

  Regarding the payment in question, the Arcadia charge of $276.07 was initiated on 11/10/2022 at 3 pm EST. This was withdrawn from the primary payment method that was on file at the time. ******* updated the payment method on file for the account on 11/10/2022 at 3:08 pm EST, after the payment had already been initiated at 3 pm EST. After *******'s update of the payment method on file, the next payment on 11/18/2022 came from the new credit card on file instead. 
  

  Should ******* or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/15/2022

  Type:Product 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 previously contacted you about dramatic increases in my bill. Your team blamed *** when, in fact, it was “community solar”. A program you frequently cite as something available to save you money (see screenshots of your responses). That lie voided our agreement as far as I am concerned. You nor anyone at your place of business is able to articulate why my community Solar prices increase when my energy use decreases; why I’m paying DOUBLE for energy I don’t receive (you use the term “connect to a solar farm” but I’m not using that energy, I’m being supplied by someone else). All recent reviews of your company state the same issues I’m mentioning above. Since your program is not saving me money as promised, you falsely purported *** was the result of fluctuations AND you can’t explain any questions I have, you aren’t able to provide the service your advertised. Immediately remove yourself from my *** account. I want a refund of all non-*** monies taken from me but a minimum of July, August, September and October of Solar monies refunded as that reflects the time period I began questioning you, changed suppliers and you inexplicably started charging me more for less use. People want to do the fright thing. You don’t need to mislead them to get there.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/02/2022

  Thank you for bringing *****’s complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Arcadia memberships work in different areas.
  
  ***** initially enrolled with Arcadia in October of 2019 and completed their enrollment in our Auto-Pay program on 6/26/2020. This means that going forward, *****’s ********* *** * ******** bills were set to be paid through Arcadia. 
  
  *****’s enrollment began with *** ******* ** as their address and following their move to *** ******* **, their Arcadia membership continued in the same nature. 
  On 2/26/2021, ***** enrolled in our 100% wind energy program through their Arcadia dashboard. At a cost of 1.5 c/kWh, 100% of their household kWh usage is matched by Renewable Energy Certificates purchased from wind farms within the US. This charge is on top of their utility charges and does not impact the delivery or supply rate they have with their utility or supplier. This aspect of membership is an additional cost that is optional and chosen by the member. It could be discontinued as needed at *****’s request via phone or email request. By selecting the 100% wind energy option, ***** typically pays an additional $20-$30 on top of their utility bill.
  
  ***** was enrolled in Community Solar on the Snowden River Parkway solar project for *** ******* ** in June of 2021 and they had one bill issued that included Community Solar savings prior to their move. Then, for *** ******* *** they began receiving Community Solar credit savings on 3/7/2022, which have continued until present. 
  
  Through our Community Solar program, ***** receives a Community Solar Adjustment on their ********* *** * ******** bills which is 100% of the total Community Solar project production value. This credit reduces the total amount displayed as due on the ********* *** * ******** account and varies on a monthly basis depending on the productivity of the solar farm. Usually, it is expected that savings are the highest in the summer months when solar production is highest.
  
  However, through Arcadia’s Community Solar program, ***** keeps a 5% portion of the total Community Solar Adjustment. The other 95% portion is owed back to the Community Solar farm for maintenance and operation costs and is included on their Arcadia statement. The percent of savings members get to receive from the Community Solar program is detailed in the Community Solar terms agreed to.
  
  As a result, no additional cost is included on *****’s Arcadia statements from Community Solar. Instead, this is resulting in their charges being lower than they otherwise would be. For example, the total solar savings applied to *****’s 10/19/22 **** bill was $277.94. ***** receives 5% of these total solar savings, which came out to be $13.90 in savings on this bill, while 95% of the savings, $264.04 has to be returned to the solar developer and is not for members to keep. This is why it is added back on to the statement through Arcadia, but is not an additional charge as explained. 
  
  Arcadia is not an electric supplier and is not related to any change of a member’s electric supplier. However, when budget billing is left on with Baltimore Gas & Electric without being adjusted and a new electric supplier is chosen, this can result in higher charges on the Baltimore Gas & Electric bill, which would then affect the amount of the Arcadia statement. ***** changed their electric supplier to *** and **** is now adding the supply charges on top of the budget billing amount. This is resulting in higher charges, despite some decreases in kWh usage, as the supply charge is being added on top of their **** budget billing amount.
  
  As detailed above, there are a couple things bringing *****’s bill up. One being their enrollment in our 100% wind energy program, which has an additional monthly charge of 1.5c/kWh on top of *****’s utility bill. The second being *****’s selection of a third party supplier while also being enrolled in budget billing with ****. ***** can either turn off budget billing with **** or go back to having **** as their supplier to resolve this issue.
  
  Should ***** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at (866) 526-0083 between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/15/2022

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  Arcadia membership #******** Arcadia customer service suggested me sign up for Arcadia to lower my monthly electricity utility bills (or at least the bill amount will remain similar, but the energy will come from solar power). So, I signed up. However, the monthly bills were actually 35 - 50% higher than what I was paying to my original electricity company. I contacted the customer service. They mentioned to me about the fine print (which they did not reveal earlier) that customers are paying for community solar power + their utility bills. In summary, Arcadia program was never about saving on utility bills. I feel cheated by this company. I want my funds - that were charged beyond my utility bill - back. I signed up for Arcadia to save on utility bills based on their advertisement. But that did not happen, instead I was charged significantly higher than what I was paying to my original utility company.

  Business Response

  Date: 11/23/2022

  Thank you for bringing ****** complaint to our attention. We completely appreciate their concerns surrounding their account and hope that we are able to shed some light on how Community Solar works with Arcadia and how savings with Community Solar credits are applied.
  
  When a member is added to a Community Solar project they receive a Community Solar agreement and Disclosure statement, which clearly states that the member will keep 5% of their Community Solar credits, as savings, while repaying the remaining 95% back to the solar developer, in order to maintain the project. 
  

  Its important to keep in mind that there would be $0 in credits had they not been enrolled in a Community Solar project.
  
  When one begins to see Community Solar credits applied to their utility bill, they notice that their utility bill has been discounted by 100% of the Community Solar credits received. 
  

  For example; if their bill was $200 but they had received a $30 Community Solar credit, their bill total as per their utility would be $170 (with 100% of the credits applied). However, without these solar credits, their bill would still be $200. Arcadia receives the members discounted bills and we process the credits on the bill, ensuring the member keeps 5% of these credits, while the 95% goes back to the Solar Developer, as agreed upon. 
  

  If ***** looks at their **** utility bills, they will see several line items titled CDG generation credit. This credit is the Community Solar credit they receive from enrollment in Community Solar through Arcadia.
  
  During the past two billing cycles, spanning October and November, ***** received a total of $63.30 in Community Solar credits. Of this, 5% of the credits, totaling $3.16, are his to keep as savings. Arcadia then added the remaining 95% that goes to the solar developer, $60.14, to his November Arcadia bill, for payment. 
  
  Arcadia did not bill back 95% of the Community Solar credit to ***** in October, which was an error, and is why it was added to the November bill.
  

  It is important that our members understand that these are not charges. They are not paying for Community Solar, they are giving back 95% of the credits they received as part of their participation in the solar project. These are funds the member would owe the utility had there been no solar credits added to their bill.
  
  The above was explained various times, by several agents when they called on 11/15/22, 11/17/22, and 11/18/22. 
  

  This year to date, ***** has received a total of $44.35 in Community Solar savings, thanks to his enrollment in Community Solar.
  
  I hope this provides clarity as to how Community Solar credits work on a member's utility bill and how Arcadia processes and bills for Community Solar Credits. 
  

  Should ***** or the Better Business Bureau wish to discuss this further, we can be reached at [email protected] or call us at ************** between 9am and 5pm EST, Mondays through Fridays.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/28/2022

  Please note that the response focuses on the 'credits' gimmick. My complaint was NOT about their 'credits' gimmick, but it was regarding the company's false advertisement that using solar will bring our utility cost down relative to our previous source of energy. In summary, signing up with their membership INCREASED our utility bills (even after accounting for the usage / unit) because they were charging us community solar use fee + the actual utility bills.

  I will currently accept the resolution because I don't want to deal with this company anymore. I have already requested them to close my account with the company.
  
  Regards,
  
  ***** *******