India's solar boom has attracted serious investment, quality manufacturers, and skilled installers. It has also attracted opportunists. In UP, consumer complaints about solar installations gone wrong increased significantly through 2025 and into 2026 as the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana made rooftop solar financially accessible to first-time buyers across Lucknow, Kanpur, and smaller cities. Subsidies of up to Rs 78,000 for a 3 kW system, combined with falling panel prices, created a large pool of motivated but inexperienced buyers. That combination is exactly what bad actors look for. Knowing the five most common tactics can save you Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh and years of frustration.
Scam 1: Panel Substitution After Contract Signing
This is the most widespread quality fraud in the Indian solar market. An installer quotes Tier-1 panels from manufacturers such as Waaree, Adani Solar, or Tata Power Solar in the written agreement. The customer signs, pays an advance, and on installation day finds a different brand or an entirely unbranded product being mounted on the roof.
The mechanics are straightforward: Tier-1 panels cost more, and the price difference between a genuine Waaree 545W panel and an uncertified imported equivalent is Rs 3,000 to Rs 6,000 per panel. On a 10-panel system, the installer pockets Rs 30,000 to Rs 60,000 in the switch while leaving you with panels that may degrade faster, lack manufacturer warranty support, and potentially disqualify you from subsidy under PM Surya Ghar's ALMM (Approved List of Models and Manufacturers) requirement.
How to protect yourself: be present on installation day or send a trusted representative. Write the exact panel brand, model number, and watt-peak specification into your contract and include a clause specifying financial penalties for substitution. Photograph each panel before it is mounted, capturing the label with the serial number. Most major manufacturers including Waaree, Adani, and Tata have QR code or serial number verification portals. Run the serial numbers before the installer leaves. This takes 15 minutes and is the most effective protection available.
Scam 2: Fake Government Subsidy Agents
This fraud targets homeowners who have heard about PM Surya Ghar subsidies but are unfamiliar with the actual process. Individuals approach potential solar buyers, sometimes through WhatsApp groups or door-to-door contact in Lucknow neighbourhoods and Kanpur colonies, posing as UPPCL representatives or MNRE-authorised agents. They offer to process the PM Surya Ghar subsidy application for an advance fee of Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000, often claiming there is a limited quota that will close soon.
There is no such authorised fee agent. The PM Surya Ghar subsidy is claimed entirely through the national portal at pmsuryaghar.gov.in. The process is free of charge and can be completed by any homeowner with their electricity consumer number, Aadhaar, and bank account details. Empanelled installers assist with registration at no extra charge as part of the standard installation service. No government representative will visit your home to collect advance cash for subsidy processing.
Red flags to watch for: any request for cash payment rather than bank transfer, insistence on meeting at your home rather than a registered business address, claims of expiring quotas or special connections, and inability to provide a GSTIN or registered office address when asked. Report such approaches to the MNRE consumer helpline or the local consumer forum.
Scam 3: Vanishing After Advance Payment
This is the most financially damaging fraud pattern for individual homeowners. An installer collects a 40 to 50 percent advance, typically Rs 60,000 to Rs 1.2 lakh on a residential system, with assurances that equipment is being ordered. Contact then becomes sporadic, deadlines pass, and eventually the installer becomes completely unreachable. This pattern spikes during October and November in UP, when festival season demand creates a rush of solar orders that some small operators take deposits on without the capacity to fulfil.
Protection measures are straightforward and non-negotiable. Never pay more than 20 to 25 percent advance on any solar installation. Insist on a GST invoice for the advance payment at the time of payment, not afterward. Verify the installer's GSTIN on the government GST portal at gst.gov.in before paying anything. Confirm that the installer is on the MNRE empanelled list for PM Surya Ghar installations. Ask for three customer references in your city and call them. Never pay in cash. Every payment should go by bank transfer so there is a timestamped, traceable transaction record. Without this, pursuing a complaint or legal recovery becomes nearly impossible.
Scam 4: Inflating System Size Beyond Your Actual Need
This fraud does not involve fake panels or missing installers. The work is done, the system is real, but you paid for more than you needed. A common pattern involves a salesperson visiting a Lucknow home and recommending a 10 kW system for a household consuming 400 to 500 units per month. The correct size for that consumption at Lucknow's solar irradiance is closer to 4 to 4.5 kW.
The right sizing formula is simple: divide your monthly electricity consumption in kWh by 120 to estimate the correct system size in kW for a UP location. A household using 360 units per month needs roughly a 3 kW system. If a quote proposes dramatically more than this formula suggests, ask the installer to show you the calculation based on your actual UPPCL bills. A legitimate installer will welcome that question. An inflated-size recommendation also affects PM Surya Ghar subsidy eligibility, since subsidy is capped at 3 kW for residential installations. Installing a 6 or 8 kW system does not increase your subsidy, and the excess capacity may take 10 or more years to recover financially.
Scam 5: Non-BIS Panels Sold as Certified Products
The PM Surya Ghar programme requires all solar panels to be BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) certified and listed on the MNRE's ALMM. This rule exists to ensure quality and performance standards for subsidised installations. Some vendors supply imported panels that are not on the ALMM and do not carry BIS certification. These panels are cheaper to procure, and the price difference is not always passed to the buyer.
The consequence is severe: if your system uses non-BIS panels, you forfeit the PM Surya Ghar subsidy entirely. On a 3 kW system, that is Rs 78,000 lost. Beyond the subsidy, uncertified panels have no guaranteed performance standard and no manufacturer warranty recognised under Indian consumer protection law.
Verification is simple. Ask the installer for the BIS certificate number for the specific panel model being supplied. Check it on the BIS official website at bis.gov.in. The panel label itself should carry the ISI mark. Cross-check the panel model on the MNRE ALMM list, which is publicly available on the MNRE website. This check takes five minutes and can save you Rs 78,000.
Sunwize Energy Systems is MNRE-empanelled for PM Surya Ghar installations and uses only ALMM-listed, BIS-certified panels. Every customer receives a written contract specifying the exact panel model and serial number range, with photos documented at installation. Buyers who research their installer, ask the right questions, and insist on written commitments can buy solar with confidence in 2026.
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