Before the light bulb

Is a warranty important to you? Whether you are buying or selling a home with solar, the best warranty is the one you never have to use, because the equipment behind it is reliable and durable enough that it rarely fails. That is the case I make for the panels and systems on our Solar Equipment page.

But even the best equipment can sometimes need warranty work. When that happens, you either have a piece of paper that is worthless, or you are backed by a company that has been around for roughly 150 years.

I did not always think about it this way. I sold SunPower for years, the oldest name in residential solar, and when SunPower filed for bankruptcy in August 2024 my phone filled up with customers asking who was going to honor their warranty. Over 100 solar companies have closed or filed for bankruptcy since 2023, according to the industry's own running list. That is why Solar Insure is included for every family I help gain energy independence.

Solar Insure is backed by Zurich, an insurance company that has been paying claims since 1872, 154 years now. At the time of this writing, even long-standing solar companies like Tesla and Sunrun have only been in the solar business for less than 20 years: Tesla's solar business dates to 2016, when it acquired SolarCity, and Sunrun was founded in 2007. Zurich is not in the solar business at all, which is exactly why it will still be there when your panels are 30 years old.

That matters most at the moment your home changes hands. A house with 0 to 5 years left on the warranty for labor, roof penetrations, the inverter, and the battery is a hard sell. A house with 20 to 25 years still protected is not. Solar Insure coverage is registered to the address, not the owner, so if you sell in five years the next buyer inherits the protection, and if you hand the house down, so do your kids. Either way, it goes with the home.

Your warranty should be backed by an insurance company, not a solar company. The full comparison, with every source, is on our Solar Equipment page.

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Bill Gurgol, Solar Bill Review, (925) 967-8949

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