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KOTA Energy Group reviews
• updated MAR 3, 2026Loading map...
The Verdict
KOTA Energy Group has a problem finishing what they start. Reviews describe systems installed in 2022 or 2023 that still aren't working right in 2024, with homeowners paying thousands to their utility while fielding excuses about fluctuating energy output. One Berkeley customer paid in full six months before the job was done, then spent another five months chasing the company for repairs while only half the panels generated power. Communication collapses after installation. We found 92 reviews describing unanswered calls, missed inspection appointments, and permit failures that stretched timelines past two years. The pattern is consistent: the sales pitch is smooth, the install crew is professional, then support vanishes. One homeowner discovered roof damage from the installation only when rain created a grapefruit-sized hole in their ceiling. When the inspector confirmed KOTA was at fault, the company sent a second crew who blamed the customer's mortar instead. (At least they showed up unannounced at 7:30 AM, so there's that.) Work quality scores reflect this split: sales conduct rates a 3.8 out of 5, but post-sale support drops to 3.0, and value scores just 2.9. If you want solar panels that turn on when promised and a company that answers the phone after cashing your check, keep looking.
If you're willing to gamble on whether your system will work a year from now, KOTA's install crews do solid work. But with 101 reviews describing delays, failed inspections, and systems that don't produce promised energy while you're still paying the loan, the odds aren't in your favor.
3 Stories That Stood Out
In February 2023 Eve S. signed a contract with Kota to install solar panels on her duplex in Berkeley. She waited about six months for the work to be scheduled, and when crews finally showed up the job never got finished. Her loan was activated before completion, and Kota accepted payment while the system remained inoperable — effectively leaving her paying for a system she could not use. City inspectors could not sign off because the installation was incomplete, and repeated assurances that repairs would happen “immediately” gave way to another five weeks of silence. After she threatened a BBB complaint, Kota put her in touch with Chance Bender, a senior project manager, who promised a one-week turnaround that stretched into a month. On December 5, 2023 — roughly four months after the installation began — the system received permission to operate, but the commissioning was botched: only half the panels produced power and the monitoring accounts were not set up correctly. After that, Kota stopped communicating altogether, including through the BBB. More than 13 months after signing the contract and over six months after paying in full, she has spent many hours trying to get the job
Telma C. discovered a $4,000 PGE True Up bill a year after getting solar panels that were supposed to cover her household usage plus home EV charging. She had signed on after a friendly door-to-door rep, Tyler, walked her through the process and promised a system sized from 12 months of PGE statements with room for the EV she planned to charge at home. The panels went live in June 2022, but by about August her monitoring app and the estimated True Up showed almost no production. Tyler first shrugged it off as normal seasonal fluctuation and told her the numbers would even out by year’s end; trusting him—she didn’t know how to read energy metrics—she waited. When the next month’s estimate doubled and looked as if she had no solar at all, she pushed again. Tyler then acknowledged a problem, eventually sent a technician, and the array was repaired. Even after that fix, the system still failed to supply the energy she’d been promised: the official True Up a year after installation landed at $4,000. She contacted multiple reps, demanded a manager callback, and never got a return call. The standout detail in her experience is the gap between the sales promise—panels sized for 12 months +
Ariel P. had KOTA install roof-mounted solar on a home with a finished office, and what started as a routine install turned into a months-long fight over a leak. After a heavy rain she discovered a grapefruit-sized hole in her office ceiling; an inspector who eventually showed up after several calls concluded the leak came from KOTA’s work — a strut or rod had lifted and allowed water into the attic. The inspector photographed the damage, confirmed KOTA was at fault, and made a temporary roof repair on December 9 so the house wouldn’t leak, but told Ariel the interior would need a separate visit to fix the ceiling. There were no more leaks after that visit, but scheduling the interior repairs became a struggle. Ariel finally booked a January 4 appointment on December 28, then woke on December 30 at 7:30 a.m. to KOTA contractors at her door, unannounced. When she let them reinspect the roof, they reversed course — blamed damaged mortar and denied responsibility — even though KOTA had been the last crew on the roof and had inspected it before installation. Ariel points out the house had shown no prior leaks, even during an earlier storm when she closed on the property, and now faces廷
Platforms Monitored
Performance by Work Type
How We Got To Trust Score 44
No Red Flags
Unauthorized Activities
Passed screening
Misleading Claims
Passed screening
Background Check
Serving customers for 8 years
BBB Rating: D-
Poor BBB standing. Significant complaints.
Natural Review Patterns
Reviews were posted naturally over time.
What You Can Expect
Dick had Kota install a solar system on his home and, after a year of trouble-free operation, a post‑storm snag made one string of panels fall short of full output when a circuit breaker tripped after Hurricane Hilda. Kota proactively reached out and set up remote monitoring; the fault cleared itself, but he asked for a visual inspection just to be sure. The crew responded right away and sent a technician to the property to check everything in person. He walked away impressed by the hands-on follow‑through — the combination of proactive monitoring after the storm and an immediate on‑site visit is the detail that stuck with him.
Andrea H. chose Kota Solar to install panels on her home and, even with the air conditioning and jacuzzi running every day, she noticed a drastic drop in her SDG&E bill. She found the installation crew professional, punctual, and tidy on the jobsite. The part that stood out most was her sales rep, McKay Hyde: he walked her through the process in plain language, avoided pushing extra panels she didn't need, and kept following up after the sale. McKay checked in several times and even came back a year after the install to go over the utility charges line by line and show exactly where the savings were coming from. She appreciated that level of honesty and follow-through, and has referred McKay and Kota Solar to several clients and neighbors who have been similarly impressed.
Elizabeth signed a contract for a solar installation on her home and then spent the next year and a half chasing the company. After the agreement, the firm essentially ghosted her: she was shuffled from one contact to another over months, with repeated calls and emails going unanswered. She eventually gave up, concluded they’d likely gone out of business, and was relieved she never handed over any money. She remains stunned that the company still maintains a website and a Yelp page and calls the whole experience a scam. What lingers is the lost 18 months and the fact that a signed contract produced no work and no payment exchanged.
Elizabeth W chose Kota for a combined roof and solar installation in 2021 on her home. Two years later she is enjoying $0 PG&E bills and says the new roof and solar array have held up beautifully. She credits salesperson Pablo A as a standout — truly wonderful and easy to work with — and points to his help as a big reason the project went smoothly. The concrete takeaway: a 2021 roof-plus-solar job that has delivered zero utility bills and solid workmanship two years on.
Michael K hired P**** ***** and his crew to put solar panels on his home and found them consistently professional, responsive, and easy to work with. The team arrived on schedule, completed the install with very little disruption to daily life, and kept communication smooth throughout. He’s had the system for more than a year now with no problems at all, and the panels have continued to perform reliably. What stood out was the combination of a punctual, low‑impact installation and a trouble‑free year of operation.
Michael A. had a solar array installed on his house, and two years after installation he discovered the roof beneath the panels needed a full replacement. He believes the installer should have identified and warned him about the roof’s poor condition before mounting equipment; instead he ended up covering the cost of a new roof after the panels were already in place. He now worries the company may have put panels on other homes without disclosing similar roof problems.
Cameron F chose KOTA for a residential solar install in Oakland in 2019 and, four years later, still praises the installation, energy production, and loan servicing. He first found KOTA through a door‑to‑door rep, Pablo, who guided him from the initial consult through post‑install followups; after shopping around and comparing a slightly cheaper SolarCity offer, he came back to KOTA because Pablo’s care and professionalism stood out. The system consistently leaves him in the green on his True Up bill, and his monthly solar loan payment runs lower than his old PG&E bill. A memorable twist: his parents were sold a system by Pablo a few months later, and they only realized the connection after both installs were complete — they agreed Pablo’s approach made the difference. Four years on, the steady production and lower monthly cost are the concrete outcomes he points to.
Marco E. gave the company "0 stars" after a five-year relationship that ended with him owing $10,000 to Edison and no help from the installer. He discovered the salesperson, Kristen Nissen — identified as a regional sales manager — collected her commission and then stopped responding. He reached out repeatedly for assistance but received no callbacks, and neither the company nor their partner SolarEdge stepped in to resolve the problem. He felt ignored and concluded the business didn’t stand by its customers. The image that stuck with him was simple and stark: a large utility bill and no post-sale support after the salesperson vanished.
Kevin S. ended up with solar panels and a system that work well, but the path to getting them on his house turned into a year-long headache. He found the salesperson friendly but quickly discovered that the rest of the company’s installation and service teams were disorganized. Appointments with PGE slipped, scheduled install dates were missed, and one crew couldn’t do the work because the only person with the pipe-bending tool was on vacation. Each mishap pushed the project back by months, leaving him holding cash that could have earned interest while he waited. The company promised a refund to compensate for the delays and never delivered. When installers removed the old panel they left holes and exposed wood on the side of his house in winter; after a long delay someone came by and painted, but they didn’t fill the holes or replace siding — instead covering a large opening with a piece of metal. In short: the panels perform, but it took over a year to get them installed, promised compensation never arrived, and the exterior clean-up remains unfinished — the metal-covered hole in his siding is the lingering reminder.
Long-term Satisfaction
Long-term satisfaction for KOTA Energy Group drops to 2.0 ★ compared to early reviews. This decline is worse than 75% of installers we looked at.
Long-term reviews carry the most weight in our methodology because they are most representative of what you should be paying for: a system that will perform for years.