Occidental Power reviews
• last updated FEB 26, 2026Loading map...
The Verdict
This company can nail the installation, then leave you stranded when something breaks. We analyzed dozens of reviews and found a sharp divide: homeowners who sailed through permitting in five minutes and are still getting callbacks seven years later, and homeowners who can't get a returned email three weeks into a warranty claim. One customer watched her monitoring system go offline and spent three weeks sending follow-up messages with no resolution, while another had a raccoon unplug a cable under his panels and saw the original installer on his roof within days to fix it. Sixteen reviews describe smooth handoffs and responsive after-sales support, but nine describe the opposite: hidden permit fees after panels were already delivered, temporary electrical connections left in place as permanent, and service requests that vanish into silence. We found one customer who caught the crew trying to use coastal-prohibited fasteners during install, then couldn't get anyone to inspect an unsafe breaker a year later. The delta between "exemplary experience" and "zero sense of urgency" suggests you're rolling the dice on which version of the company shows up when you need them.
If you're willing to gamble that your system will run flawlessly for a decade and you'll never need a service call, the install quality might justify the risk. But if you want confidence that someone will answer the phone when your monitoring goes dark or your inverter throws an error, explore other options.
Reviews That Shaped Our Verdict
Seven years ago this homeowner went with Oxy after they delivered the best bid and a careful plan for a large rooftop array — the crew even helped secure a Fire Department variance so the system could be maximized. Oxy kept them updated through every phase, and the installation sailed through final inspection in about five minutes. This week the array’s capacity suddenly dropped to roughly half, so they placed a troubleshooting call. The original lead installer returned, climbed onto the roof, and within seconds isolated the fault: an in-line cable under a panel had come unplugged, likely after raccoons tumbled beneath the modules. He reconnected the cable, tucked other wires neatly out of the way, rinsed the panels, and restored full output that same day. The most memorable detail for them was that the same technician who designed and installed the system personally diagnosed and fixed the problem on the roof — a hands-on follow-up that got the array back to full power immediately.
Karen V hired Occidental to install solar on her home in November 2021, a house just a block from the coast. During the install she caught the crew trying to use fasteners that were clearly marked as unsafe for coastal use, and then ran into repeated communication breakdowns—technicians showing up unannounced and a mistake in her email that sent her personal information to a stranger. About a year and a half later, when she asked Occidental for service, they repeatedly ignored her: two promised callbacks never happened and written requests went unanswered. She asked for a referral to an electrician familiar with solar; none came, so she hired an independent electrician who found an unsafe breaker in the solar box—Occidental refused to come inspect or fix it. A separate PG&E visit uncovered another problem: the crew had left a temporary connection in the main meter box instead of a permanent one. In the end she was left dealing with safety concerns and no support from the company, the most striking consequence being the temporary main-meter connection and unsafe breaker that outsiders had to identify.
Tina C. hired Occidental for a roughly $26,000 rooftop solar install almost three years ago and ended up facing the part of the job that mattered least to her home’s energy — but most to her wallet. After panels had been delivered and the system was up and running, Gregory demanded immediate payment and threatened a mechanics lien; that pressure pushed her to pay the remaining $26,000 in cash even though the invoice itself allowed 30 days to pay. She had shopped the market first, comparing bids and landing on Occidental because they undercut competitors and touted experience — Luminalt was the main rival. That pricing dance became one flashpoint: Occidental promised an apples‑to‑apples match of a $26,604 competitor quote, yet charges and terms didn’t line up. Another dispute centered on who would “float” the manufacturer rebate. Occidental later asked for a fee to carry the rebate; Gregory later claimed a $150 pass‑through, while Tina kept an email showing the company quoted “100 to 200 dollars” on the financed sum. She found that competing bidders had offered to carry the rebate with no extra charge. Small line‑item surprises kept surfacing. On the phone she was told a permit‑
Platforms Monitored
Performance by Work Type
How We Got To Trust Score 61
No Red Flags
Unauthorized Activities
Passed screening
Misleading Claims
Passed screening
Background Check
Serving customers for 21 years
Among the longest-standing installers in the market.
BBB Rating: A+
Excellent BBB standing. Strong complaint resolution.
Natural Review Patterns
Reviews were posted naturally over time.
Licensed Contractor
A valid contractor license is on record.
What You Can Expect
Alex B. had Occidental install a residential solar system eleven years ago and, after a smooth start, even recommended them to friends in San Francisco. He experienced a steady decline beginning about three years ago when the system’s inverters started failing—first one, then two, and eventually half a dozen—and getting replacements turned into a battle; Occidental did swap some units, but only after significant delay. This summer more inverters failed, and his emails went unanswered. Over the past two months he reached out four times with no response, despite remembering a multi-year warranty that should cover these failures. What began with solid work from Greg and Keith fell apart into long waits and silence, leaving him feeling abandoned and unable to access the warranty. He can no longer recommend the company; the image that sticks is four unanswered outreach attempts in two months while a still-active warranty sits unused.
Darrell S. had Occidental Power install a photovoltaic system on his home ten years ago and discovered the panels themselves still perform as expected. Three weeks ago the system’s monitoring portal began showing “not reporting,” and he tried the company’s troubleshooting steps himself to no avail. He phoned and emailed Occidental Power repeatedly, received assurances that someone would help, then waited through weeks of promises and sporadic replies without a solution; the outsourced monitoring help desk is in the Philippines, so no one came by to diagnose the issue in person. After spending thousands on the installation, he’s left without online visibility into his system and frustrated that post‑installation support for the monitoring has not materialized — the dashboard remains offline despite all the follow‑up.
Russell W. had an Enphase-microinverter solar system installed through Occidental and, after another two years with the system, experienced three more microinverter failures. He blamed the manufacturer rather than Occidental, but he leaned on the company repeatedly as problems cropped up. Occidental — and Greg in particular — kept troubleshooting, arranging repairs, and doing whatever was needed to keep the panels running, repeatedly stepping in well beyond what you'd expect when the fault lay with the MFG. Russell hopes Enphase will produce a long-term fix so the cycle stops, but what stayed with him was that when hardware failed again and again, Occidental’s hands-on, persistent support kept his system working.