[RE-wrenches] Liability

Jeff Yago jryago at dtisolar.com
Wed Nov 23 10:05:12 PST 2011


I took some heat several years ago when this same thread went around the
first time and I said we refuse to work on any system we did not sell and
install.  Although there have been a few times when I made an exception to
this rule (like crying, pleading, and begging from a homeowner that clearly
got screwed by a really bad solar installer),  I feel this is the safest
policy.  

 

For example, you are called into a straighten out a "mess" and find several
obvious wiring or setpoint errors which are easy to correct while there.
You  may also observe other problems you did not have time to fix, plus
there is always the chance that there were major issues you could not see by
casual observation.  If that house burns down by an electrical fire several
weeks after your site visit, you can bet you will be spending a lot of time
and money trying to prove it had nothing to do with the "tweaking" you did
while trying to help.   We also see this kind of problem when a
do-it-yourself homeowner tries to save a buck by ordering all their solar
equipment over the internet at prices even below our costs.  When nothing
works, they call and want us to come over for a few dollars and make it
right after they find out the internet seller does not provide installation
support.

 

As much as you would like to help, I still think except for extreme cases of
need, the best thing to do is refer them back to their internet supplier,
and if you do give in to their pleading, document everything before and
after you touch anything with photos, field notes, and hopefully a witness
as suggested by others following this thread.

 

Jeff Yago

DTI Solar Inc.

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