Solara Solar Panel Warranty E-mail

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The following is a complete transcript of my e-mails between the various parties while attempting to get my Solara solar panels replaced under warranty. The e-mails are color coded based upon who sent the e-mail. The following is a list of the parties who are involved and their color coding.

Since there's a lot of e-mails, I'll provide links to relatively important events:

"I to have been trying to resolve a similar issue with Solara. 
It seems that Mr Heise has not changed."

March 5, 2005:
To: fred@semarine.com

My name is Geoffrey Schultz. I purchased 2 Solara panels from you on June 18, 2003. I just returned to my boat in Guatemala and found that one of the panels is not providing any output. What is the warranty period on the panels and how do I get it replaced? I expect to be moving the boat through Key West later in the year.

Thanks, Geoff

March 23, 2005:
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoffrey,

The warranty is 20 years. You can contact Peter Burcat at Solara to make
your claim. (408) 846-0077 EX 10 mailto:pburcat@solaraenergy.com

Fred King
Southeast Marine Services, LLC

March 25, 2005
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com

My name is Geoffrey Schultz. I purchased 2 Solara panels from South East Marine in Oregon, USA in June, 2003. These are flexible panels measuring 29.25" x 24" and the one which failed has a serial number of 184426.

When I returned to my boat in Guatemala and found that one of the panels is not providing any output. What is the warranty period on the panels and how do I get it replaced? I expect to be moving the boat through Key West later in the year.

Thanks, Geoff

March 25, 2005
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com

Please contact South East Marine directly to arrange for the return of the
solar module. We are very surprised to hear there is an output problem.

March 27, 2005
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

Here's the message that I got back from Peter Burcat at Solara. It appears that we need to work this out.

-- Geoff

[copy of above message]

March 28, 2005
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoff,

That's interesting. We called them and they said to have you contact
them directly. We will call them now and inform them that you will be
contacting them. We don't handle warranties for solar panels here since
that would just add an additional step in the process and end up costing
more for the shipping and handling.

Fred

June 26, 2005
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

I'm in Honduras and am getting ready to store the boat for hurricane season. How should I proceed with this and who do I need to deal with?

-- Geoff

June 27, 2005
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoff,

Warranty service is handled directly through the distributor. You should
be able to contact pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat) or
tguevara@solaraenergy.com (Tom Guevara) 408.846.0077 office, FAX:
408.390.8877 to resolve this issue.

Fred

June 28, 2005
To: tguevara@solaraenergy.com (Tom Guevara)
CC: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

I've been trying to deal with this problem since February of this year. South East Marine claims that I need to deal with Solar Energy and based upon an e-mail that I received from Peter Purcat, I'm supposed to deal with the dealer. Now which is it? I'm in Honduras and am getting ready to store the boat for the hurricane season. I want to figure out how this is going to be dealt with as I don't want to spend another cruising season with a non-functional solar panel.

[copy of problem description]

June 28, 2005
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)
CC: tguevara@solaraenergy.com (Tom Guevara)

Dear Geoff:

Please return the non-functioning solar module to South East Marine, as they
were your point of purchase.

Peter

June 28, 2005
To: Fred@semarine.com

Fred,

Here's the response from Peter Burcat. I need you two to agree on how to handle this. I'm stuck in the middle in Honduras and it's ridiculous that I'm having to go round and round on this subject.

[copy of above e-mail from Peter Burcat]

June 29, 2005:
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoff,

I'm not ignoring you I am trying to get some resolution. I'm not sure
yet why this is so difficult. I'd suggest bringing it back to the states
with you if it's not too inconvenient. One thing I do know is there is
about a two month backlog on orders for these units.

Fred

June 30, 2005
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoff,

You can send the panel to us. I still think it's silly to be shipping
things all over the place but it appears that's how we’ll have to handle
it. Sorry for the snafu. Again, the panels have at least a two month
lead time. Solara has no panels in stock. Take care in packing the unit
to avoid further damage. Extra damage will just complicate things.

June 30, 2005:
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

There's no reasonable way to ship it from Honduras. It would have to go FedEx/UPS International, and that would run a fortune. We're flying back to the States tomorrow and our bags are packed to the limit. I believe that next year we'll be going through Key West, so I think that we'll be able to exchange panels then. Do you think that it would be possible to do this if I give you plenty of advance notice?

Thanks, Geoff

June 30, 2005
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoff,

It's hard to say. They market is very tight right now but who knows what
it'll be like at that time. We'll certainly do our best to make the
exchange as efficiently as possible. Unfortunately we have to have the
defective panel in hand before we can ship out any replacement. What is
the model number and rating of the panels you have?

Fred

July 6, 2006
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

You may recall that several years ago I bought 2 Solara SM225M panels from you and that they failed within 2 years. My boat has not been back in the US since then and we've just pulled into the Chesapeake for hurricane season. So, we can finally get these panels exchanged.

Based upon e-mails from Peter Burcat I have to handle the exchange through you. Both panels have failed at this point. How do we proceed?

[Copies of e-mail describing failure and message from Peter Burcat telling me to deal with SE Marine]

July 6, 2006:
From: fred@semarine.com

I'm making an inquiry of Solara in Germany to try to find out what to do
about this. I'm sorry for the trouble you're having with this and will
do what I can to help resolve it.

On another note, we seem to have misfiled the invoice or sales receipt
that we sent to you. We have record of the dates of the transaction so
if you could email or fax (503 543 2845) a copy of the receipt that
would be helpful.

July 6, 2006
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

I'm aboard my boat in the Chesapeake getting it ready to store for hurricane season and my house is outside of Boston. I don't have access to my receipts from here. I do have access to my VISA statements and I see that my VISA was charged for $1999.90 on June 18, 2003. You shipped the panels to Hollywood, FL where I was working on the boat at the time. I hope that provides enough data for you.

July 7, 2006
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

We're flying back to Boston on 7/12. I would very much like to have the panels shipped to wherever by then as I want to replace the panels when we come back down to cruise the Chesapeake after Labor Day. I was hoping to get the new panels before shipping the old ones as coming up with packing materials for them could be quite daunting considering the small town that we're docked at.

-- Geoff

P.S. One of the panels works as long as its cool out. I get output first thing in the morning and on cloudy days. Once it gets warm the output stops. I suspect that there's some kind of thermal issue where it expands and loses connection.

July 7, 2006
From: fred@semarine.com

Geoff,

I've contacted Solara and they suggest you can contact them directly.
This seems more reasonable anyway since you're halfway between us and
them so shipping will get unreasonable if the panels are sent here first.

The contact is

Frank Heise
Export manager (off-grid-systems)
SOLARA AG

e-mail: heise@solara.de
phone: +49-(0)40-391065-20

SOLARA AG
Behringstr. 16
D-22765 Hamburg
phone: +49-40-391065-0
fax: +49-40-391065-99
www.solara.de; info @solara.de

July 9, 2006
To: heise@solara.de

I was given your name by Fred King of South East Marine in Scappose, Oregon, USA. HE told me to contact you directly to exchange 2 failed panels. In 1993 I purchased 2 SM225M solar panels from SE Marine. The serial numbers on the panels are 184426 and 147930. Within two years both panels have failed. I get no output from one of the panels and I get output from the other panel as long as it is cool out. Once the temperature warms up, it stops outputting.

The boat has been out of the USA since the panels failed and I have just returned to the USA. I wish to exchange the panels as soon as possible. I would prefer to receive new panels before shipping the old panels back as it will be very difficult to find boxes large enough to fit the panels in my current location (which is a very small town).

Please let me know how to proceed. Note that I fly to my home in the Boston area on Wednesday, so I need to have this resolved by then.

July 18, 2006
To: heise@solara.de

This message was sent on July 9 and I did not receive a response. Please note that since then I have returned to the Boston area and I am no longer near the boat. I need to have replacement panels shipped here by the end of August so that I can replace them and return the defective panels to you when I return to the boat in September.

[copy of above message]

July 18, 2006
From: heise@solara.de

Hello Mr. Schultz

Thanks for contacting us. With your discription, of no output when it is
warm and output when it cooles down, I would say that some of the cell
connectors (the silver line interconnecting the solar cells with each
other) in the module are broken. One question:
Are you using the modules mobile?
Do you have any pictures where I can see the panels installed?
Are the panel installed in a way that they can flex?
Has fred King purchased the modules from Solara Energy in the States or
from West Marine?
I ask you this because I don't want you to return the modules - that is
too expensive. Once we have a solution you can dispose the modules, I
don't want them back. The above questions are helping to find the
failure and to avoid mistakes in the future.
You wrote you bought them 1993, I think you mean 2003? In 1993 we have
not exported any kind of material to the USA.
If my above idea of the failure is right the only solution is to replace
the modules and install new ones.

I'm looking forward to hear from you and hopefuly to get a picture.
For easier communication: Do have any other e-mail adress than this
sailmail adress? I hope you received this message!

Kind regards
Frank Heise
SOLARA AG

July 18, 2006
To: heise@solara.de

Frank,

I'll use this e-mail address since I'm no longer sailing and  I can send and receive attachments here.
Now, answers to your questions:

>Are you using the modules mobile?

I don't know what this is.

>Do you have any pictures where I can see the panels installed?

I have attached 2 photos showing the panels.  Unfortunately my laptop with detailed photos is on the boat.

> Are the panel installed in a way that they can flex?

The panels are glued and screwed to a hard fiberglass surface which does not flex at all.  The panels are slightly bent.  The difference between 1 edge and the other is probably 25-30 mm.

>Has fred King purchased the modules from Solara Energy in the States or
>from West Marine?

Fred stated that he purchased them from the Solara distributor in the US who has gone out of business.


>You wrote you bought them 1993, I think you mean 2003?

Yes, it was 2003!
Solar Panel

July 24, 2006
From: heise@solara.de

Hello Geoffrey

Thanks for the answeres and the pictures. Please take a look to my attachment and confirm that the modules are installed on that place.

# mobile use, means you put the module during the day in serveral places. But in your answeres you explained what you did, it is ok for me.
# I can imagine that the fibreglass carried forward vibrations from the boat. You said you glued it, did you put some glue in the middle under the panel?
# does you module have up-bended edges on the long side of the module? I'm this because I want to find out what went wrong and I want to avoid failures in the future.

Hear you soon.

Regards Frank Heise SOLARA AG

July 24, 2006
To: heise@solara.de

Frank,

1) The modules are not mobile.  They remain in one place.
2) The panels have screws and silicone adhesive holding them to the fiberglass.  The silicone was applied to the middle and the edges.
3) There is a rubber mesh under the electrical connector on the panel to keep it from scratching the fiberglass.
4) The edges which are bent up are parallel to the bend.  In other words, the panel is bent the correct way.

August 1, 2006
To: heise@solara.de

Frank,

I still need to replace the panels. How are we going to handle this? Remember that I'm at home in the US and the boat is now 700 miles away from me.

August 14, 2006
To: heise@solara.de


We've been corresponding for over a month.  I've sent photos and described the installation.  I hope that this has helped you.  However, I still haven't heard how I'm going to get new panels.  I'm headed down to the boat in about 3 weeks and I was really hoping to have the new panels.  Will this be possible?  Please let me know how this is going to get resolved.

September 11, 2006
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

I've been corresponding with Peter Burcat for quite some time trying to get these panels replaced. Now e-mail to him is bouncing. I've also been dealing with a Frank Heise, but he has stopped replying to my e-mails. Is there anything that you can do to get some replacement panels? Solara does not seem to be a reputable company to deal with.

September 11, 2006
To: heise@solara.de

Frank,

I've been writing you for the past 2 months and I haven't gotten a response as to when I can expect my replacement panels. I have been corresponding with Solara since 3/2005 on this matter. This needs to be resolved. Please get back to me as soon as possible.

September 14, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)
CC: heise@solara.de

Peter,

I have been trying to obtain replacement SM225 panels for my boat for 2 years.  I finally have the boat back in the US and thought this would be simple.  You told me to deal with Frank Heise and I was.  I even sent photos of the installation to him and we corresponded several times with installation details.  However, since July 24th all of my e-mails have gone unanswered.  This is ridiculous! 

Mail to your account started bouncing, so I thought that you had left the company.  It wasn't until yesterday when I contacted Skip Probst that I found out that you were a founder and that you were still with Solara.

I would very much appreciate your help in getting this resolved.  I have limited time back in the US with the boat and need to get this solved in the near future. 

September 14, 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Dear Mr. Schultz:

I am copying your message to Solara in Germany so they can address your concern as to why Frank Heise is no longer corresponding with you since you had been exchanging correspondece with him up until July 24, 2006. Hopefully, you will get a response from Mr. Heise.

I am not aware of why you need to replace the SM225's you have on your boat. The SM225's would have been supplied by SolaraAg. We do not have any SM225's in stock, nor do we know when, or if, we will have any more in stock.

Please keep me updated as to any communication you may receive from Mr. Heise.

Peter Burcat

September 14, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

Thank you very much for your help on this subject.  I will point out that I began writing you from my boat in the Caribbean ("BlueJacket" xxxxxxx@sailmail.com) starting in 3/2005 and we continued corresponding for several months.  I was trying to see if I could obtain panels anywhere that I was at in the Caribbean.  You also were in contact with Fred King of SE Marine regarding this issue. 

Regarding the issue of SM225 availability, I will point out that this is your issue.  I purchased these from a US distributor and Solara provides a 20 year warranty .  You need to figure out how to make good on the warranty.  I fail to see why I've been forced to deal with Germany.  The panels failed within 2 years and I've been trying to resolve this issue since early in 2005.

I'm the retired CEO of what was New England's largest Internet Service Provider and we distinguished ourselves by providing the highest quality customer support.  We clearly were not the cheapest service out there, but we were highly successful.  Your panels were far from the cheapest, but I believed that they were very high quality.  I would expect that your firm would provide customer service that matches your pricing.

September 21, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

I haven't heard a thing from Frank Heise or anyone else.  How should I proceed?

September 27, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

I think that I have been more than patient with Solara.  At this point I am loosing my patience.  I have been corresponding with representatives of Solara for over two years in an attempt to obtain replacements for my SM225 panels.  Lately all of my e-mails have gone unanswered.  You said that you were going to contact the German headquarters to find out why Frank Heise stopped corresponding with me, but I have heard nothing.  My e-mail to you regarding this went unanswered.  This is totally unacceptable!  What kind of company am I dealing with?

I spent almost $2000 on these panels in 2003.  They both failed within 2 years.  The panels carry 20 year warranties, yet this warranty appears to be worthless.

I want to know how this is going to be resolved and a contact of someone who will personally work these issues.  The amount of time that my boat will be back in the US is shrinking quickly, so this needs to be resolved ASAP.

September 27, 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Mr. Schultz:

Solara Energy is not the manufacturer of the SM225's. As such, we have to rely on the supplier, Solara AG and Mr. Heise when it comes to warranty issues. I have sent e-mails to Mr. Heise, but I do not have an answer for you as to why he stopped corresponding with you and why he is not responding to my e-mails. I do know that very often, German workers take extended holidays that can last for a few weeks. I am not trying to make excuses, as I want to know what is going on as well. If we had any SM225's in our warehouse, I would not hesitate to send you a replacement. Unfortunately, we have been back-ordered for months on all sizes of the SM modules. I will make further attempts to contact Mr. Heise and others at Solara AG on your behalf.

September 27, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

I'm the retired CEO of what was New Englands largest Internet provider, and quite honestly, your answer doesn't hold water.  I go to the Solara Energy web site and I find the SM225M panels listed.  There's no differentiation between where they're made.  This is an internal issue which does not involve me.  I don't care where the panels are made.  All that I know is that I purchased a panel from SE Marine who purchased the panel from you.  You need to make good on the warranty. 

-- Geoff Schultz

October 5 , 2006
To: heise@solara.de

Frank,

I have been writing to you for months trying to obtain warranty replacement for my SM225M panels.  For some reason you have stopped writing to me.   Please place me in contact someone who can help me.  If there is some problem with this, please let me know what the problem is.  This is going on much too long.

October 5 , 2006
To: info@solara.de (only contact e-mail address listed on their web site)

My name is Geoff Schultz.  In 2002 I purchased 2 SM225M panels from a distributor in the US for use on my boat. The panels failed within 2 years.  My boat has been out of the USA since then and there has been no way to obtain replacement panels.  In July I returned to the USA and tried to obtain replacements.  I was corresponding with Frank Heise,  but he has not replied to any of my e-mails since 18-July.  This is completely unacceptable.

Please provide the name and e-mail address of someone who can resolve this problem.

October 5 , 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

I haven't heard a word from Frank Heise or anyone in Germany.  I need to figure out who to contact over there so that this can be resolved.  Provide me with an e-mail address, even if it's the CEOs.

October 5 , 2006
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

As you know I've been trying to obtain replacement panels from Solara for a couple of years.  I brought the boat back into the US in July and thought that this would be an easy thing to do.  I contacted Peter Burcat and he put me in contact with Frank Heise, who is the export manager for Solarara in Germany.  We were corresponding nicely until mid-July when all of a sudden responses to my e-mails stopped.  Despite multiple e-mails to Frank, I have received nothing back.

I have been trying to work this through Peter Burcat, but he hasn't been very helpful.  He's more or less said that I have to work this through Germany, which I think ridiculous.  I purchased these panels through SE Marine and you purchased them through the US distributor, where Peter seems to be upper management.   It should not be my responsibility to deal with Germany in order to obtain warranty replacements.  These panels carry a 20 year warranty, and someone has to back that up.  I don't know what the problem between the US and Germany is, but it shouldn't be up to me to resolve this.

If you can do anything to move this along, I would be very appreciative.  I can be reached at ....

October 6 , 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Here is the contact information we have for Solara AG:

Headquarters Hamburg (headquarters, sales dept.)
Wismar (production)

Management Thomas Rudolph (CEO)
Thomas Leidreiter (CFO) Export manager Dipl.-Ing.
Frank Heise Phone: +49 40 - 391065-20 E-mail: heise@solara.de

Adress 22765 Hamburg, Germany Behringstr. 16
Phone +49 40 - 391065-0 Fax +49 40 - 391065-99
E-mail info@solara.de Internet www.solara.de

October 6, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

I'm trying to understand something.  You're the co-founder and EVP of Solara, and this is all of the contact information that you have...Please explain the relationship between Solara AG and Solara Energy. 

Why am I having to deal with Solara AG when these panels were purchased from Solara Energy?  I'm just getting passed the buck and that's just wrong.  It shouldn't be my responsibility to deal with Solara AG.

-- Geoff

October 6 , 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)
CC: rudolph@solara.de, Mark Weiss <maweiss@solaraenergy.com>

I have searched our records and I am unable to find any purchase you made from Solara Energy. We distributed the SM modules that we purchased from Solara AG to dealers around the country. We do not have any SM modules in stock and therefore, any warranty issues are addressed to the manufacturer who is Solara AG. Solara AG and Solara Energy are not related in any business sense, other than as a manufacturer and distributor. I have sent Solara AG copies of your e-mails hoping to receive a response. I am uncertain why Frank Heise is not responding to your inquiries or our e-mails. I am once again copying him with this e-mail.

October 6, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

Thanks for the answer.  As I've stated many times before, I purchased the panels from SE Marine Services in OR who purchased the panels from Solara Energy.  Fred King of SE Marine told me to contact you.  My first e-mail to you was dated March 25, 2005.  You told me to deal with SE Marine.  Eventually they dropped out of the loop.  Now you're trying drop out of the loop.  This is poor business.

I put these panels on my boat in June of 2003 and then moved the boat to Guatemala for hurricane season.  The panels functioned fine during the 2004 cruising season.  When I returned to the boat in 2005 I found that they weren't working.  For all intents and purposes the only functioned for 1 season.  I spent close to $2000 for the panels and I want them to work!

I fail to understand why you can't order these panels and handle the warranty return!

October 18, 2006
To: rudolfe@solara.de (Thomas Rudolfe, Solara AG CEO)


My name is Geoff Schultz. In 2002 I purchased two SM225M panels from a vendor in the USA for use on my boat. The panels failed within 2 years.   I contacted the vendor who placed me in contact with Peter Burcat of Solara Energy, who was the distributor for the panels in the USA.  My boat was in the Caribbean at the time and it was determined that there was no way to get replacement panels to me.  I July I returned to the USA and once again contacted Peter Burcat.  He told me to contact Frank Heise of Solara, AG, which I did.

Frank and I exchanged several e-mails and I sent images of my installation.  I thought that everything was going well until Frank stopped replying to my e-mails.  The last e-mail that I received from him was on July 18th.  I have sent him multiple e-mails since then, but I have not received anything back.  Peter claims to have e-mailed him also, but he says that none of his e-mails have been returned either.  I've even tried e-mailing info@solara.de with this information, but no one has responded.

I fail to understand what is going on.  These panels carry a 20 year warranty, yet no one seems to be willing to provide me with replacement panels.  This is completely unacceptable!  Please place me in contact with someone who will solve this problem.

October 23, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

It's been almost 3 weeks since our last e-mails and I've heard nothing.  I've tried writing to Frank Heise, Thomas Rudolph (CEO) and their general information address (info@solara.de) and I've heard nothing back. 

As a result I've decided to publish my tale on the Internet.  Believe me, as the retired CEO of New England's largest Internet service provider, I know who and what to target.  This should give many of your potential customers something to think about before purchasing Solara panels.

My first posting is located at
http://www.7knots.com/cgi-bin/list_forum.pl?board=Outfitting_Gear&view=409.  I'll hold off posting to the remainder of the sites until the end of the week.  Hopefully by then this will be resolved and there will be no need to publish anything.

October 24, 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Mr. Schultz:

I have advised you on numerous occasions that the solar panels are manufactured by Solara AG. I have provided you with their address and contact information. I have attempted to contact Mr. Heise and Mr. Rudolph as well. I have not received any response from either of them or anyone else at Solara AG. We have discontinued distributing their solar panels for this very reason of their failure to take responsibility for any issues relating to products they manufacture. At no time did Solara Energy sell you any products. We distributed the products to a dealer who then sold you the products. Please be advised that any negative postings you publish that misrepresents any facts will be responded to utilizing the full protections of the legal system.

Solara Energy is not affiliated in any way with Solara AG. Accordingly, any such misrepresentation on your part, as you keep stating you are a sophisticated former CEO, will be responded to through the commencement of a legal action against you personally. I want to assist you with this situation. If I had a replacement panel in my warehouse, I would not hesitate to immediately provide you with the replacement panel. Which of course brings up another issue. Where is the panel that you claim is defective? Did you return it to the place where you purchased the panel because, as of today's date, we have never seen the panel or been provided the opportunity to test the panel to see if in fact it is defective, and if it is defective, what may be the possible cause of the defect, if any.

Peter Burcat

October 24, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

You can huff and puff all that you want, but I know damn well that as long as I report the facts exactly as they occurred, then there is absolutely nothing that you can do.  The truth is the truth.  If you dispute any of the facts, please let me know what's incorrect and I'll correct it.  If the issue is the title of posting, I will change that to "Solara Won't Back Warranty on Solar Panels".  I will also change the first sentence to "The following chronicles my futile attempts to get Solara AG, a manufacturer of Solar Panels, to live up to their warranty obligations."


Please correct any of the following statements.

1) You are or were the distributor for Solara AG panels in the US.   
2) According to SE Marine, they purchased the panel from you.  If memory serves me right, you even dropped shipped the panel to me.
3) If I go to your web site you still list Solara AG panels as products that you sell.

As far as why I claim that the panels don't work, well, one panel provides 0 volts output and the other provides output until it gets warm and then it drops to 0 V.  SE Marine doesn't want the panel back as there's nothing that they can do with it. 

Based upon your claim that you no longer distribute Solara AG solar panels, then you should have no problem with this posting as it won't effect your business.  I'm sorry that your company name is similar, but I will make sure that I fully state the names of the companies involved.  

You're complaining that I'm telling the story of what occurred and that Solara Energy, Inc was involved.  That's a fact whether you like it or not.  My complaint is that I'm out almost $2000 and that Solara AG won't back the warranty.  You made money off of this sale, SE Marine made money and I'm left holding the bag.  You claim that you would replace them if you had any panels in stock.  Well, order 2 and when you get them, I'll ship my panels to you and you can ship me the new panels.

October 24, 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Mr. Schultz:

I do not "huff and puff." I appreciate the fact that the law is in place to protect individuals from those who do not adhere to the law. Misrepresentation is an actionable offense that would entitle a harmed party/company to financial recovery. The truth is the truth and I have been honest and upfront with you at all times. There is a significant difference between Solara Energy and Solara AG. If you intend to make any postings that could mislead a reader to think Solara Energy is Solara AG, which would include only a reference to "Solara" then you are in fact knowingly misleading the reader. I promise you I will not hesitate to bring a legal action against you seeking an injunction and seeking monetary damages. If you believe differently, then it will be up to the judge and jury to decide who is right and who will be paying a significant amount of dollars.

You purchased the panel from SE Marine. You paid SE Marine for the panel. Your proper course of conduct is to return the panel to SE Marine. The panel needs to be inspected and tested to find out why there is low output. I do not want to speculate on what could be the cause whether it is the panel itself or was damaged during installation. If it is a defective panel, then you should be seeking a refund from SE Marine. I am at a loss to understand why you have not pursued this course of remedy. You have decided the buck should stop at Solara Energy, the distributor. Your contract, which is the privity in this matter, is with SE Marine, not Solara Energy. Since we are not the manufacturer, any issues of performance that are brought to our attention, are directed to the manufacturer, who you know is Solara AG. As I have stated numerous times, Solara Energy wants to assist you with getting a response from Solora AG. We are just as frustrated as you are in the non-response from Solara AG. We would readily join you in stating the issue of Solara AG's non-responsiveness. However, I am very concerned that your posting and comments will mis-lead others to think Solara Energy is the problem in this matter.

Solara Energy, and not Solara AG, is developing a new solar module, the MP module. We are anticipating having the new module, which is more powerful and lighter than the Solara AG module, available early next year. I am certainly willing to discuss working with you on obtaining some MP modules once they are available. Obviously, SE Marine needs to be brought into the consideration when it comes to the money aspect. As far as your statement that Solara Energy "made money off of this sale," well unfortunately that is not correct. The reason Solara Energy does not have any Solara AG panels in the warehouse has nothing to do with performance issues of the panels. On the contrary, you are one of the very few people to have a problem with the panel. In actuality, with the exchange rate swing drastically devaluing the US dollar and the doubling of shipping costs to obtain the panels from Germany, we had to discontinue the importation and distribution of the panels because Solara Energy was losing money on every panel that we sold to our dealers. Our option was to increase the price of the panel 30% or discontinue the panel. We chose to discontinue the importation and distribution. Therefore, Solara Energy did not make money on your sale. This is very easily proved by looking at our invoice from Solara AG and our invoice to SE Marine.

Solara Energy has, and is willing to continue, to assist you however possible in this matter. Solara AG is the bad guy here, not Solara Energy. However, if you post any mis-leading or false information about Solara Energy, all bets are off and I will proceed with a legal action. I would hope it will not come to that point.

Peter Burcat, Esq.
Legal Counsel for Solara Energy

October 24, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

I understand the law very well.  I owned a Fischer Panda generator that was faulty from day 1 and FP never stood behind it.  I created a similar posting which detailed my experience with their generator and also created a FischerPandaSucks.com web site which allowed other owners to post their own experiences with their FP generators.  FP threatened to sue for defamation and they never could do anything because my postings were completely factual.  I ended up taking them to court and they paid me $K.  So don't think that you're talking to a legal neophyte here.

The fact that you didn't make any money on this transaction isn't my issue.  That's bad business on your part.  You're the end point of contact in the US for these panels.  You had the business relationship with Solara AG and I can only guess that something happened with your relationship which has caused them not to return your e-mails.  While Solara AG might ignore me, I can't imagine them not returning e-mails from their US distributor.  There's far more to this story than is being told.

At this point you want me to return the panels to SE Marine.  They're going to look at the panels and say "Nope, they don't work."  They'll then return them to you.  What are you going to do with them?  Why stick them into the middle?  What I see happening is me pulling the panels off, shipping them to SE Marine, them shipping them to you and me never seeing anything again.  Once I pull the panels off I'll have to get someone to repair the holes in the Awlgriped dodger.  Then I'll be out my $2K for the panels, shipping and the cost of the dodger repair.

The problem here is that no one has offered to do anything to help me.  I'm the one stuck with failed panels.  I'm the one out $2K.  I'm the one stuck sending e-mails and calling Germany.  You may have sent e-mails on my behalf, but I was never copied on them, so I have no proof that anyone else has raised a finger on my behalf.  What ever happened to making the customer happy? 

October 25, 2006
From: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

[Copy of e-mail from September 14, 2006 showing that he CCed info@solar.de. Note that this went to the general e-mail delivery box. Another message shows a forward of my e-mails on October 6, 2006 to Frank Heiss, Thomas Rudolfe and Mark Weiss (I have no idea who this is.)]

October 25, 2006
To: fred@semarine.com

Fred,

This is Geoff Schultz, the guy who's been going round and round regarding the defective SM225M panels that I bought from you.  I've had a series of amazing e-mails with Peter Burcat.  Here's one of his latest to me. 

---- From Peter Burcat 10/24/2006 ---

You purchased the panel from SE Marine. You paid SE Marine for the panel. Your proper course of conduct is to return the panel to SE Marine. The panel needs to be inspected and tested to find out why there is low output. I do not want to speculate on what could be the cause whether it is the panel itself or was damaged during installation. If it is a defective panel, then you should be seeking a refund from SE Marine. I am at a loss to understand why you have not pursued this course of remedy. You have decided the buck should stop at Solara Energy, the distributor. Your contract, which is the privity in this matter, is with SE Marine, not Solara Energy.

---- End of message

Q1: If I were to return the panels to you, what would you do with them once you determine that they're defective?

Next, I've told him over and over that I purchased the panels from you.  I believe that you may have had them drop-ship the panels to me. 

Q2: Not that it really matters, but could you please check your records to see how these panels were shipped?   They were shipped to S/V BlueJacket and/or Geoffrey Schultz at the Harbor Island Marina, Hollywood, FL.

Here's an e-mail from Peter today. 

--------

I have searched our records and I am unable to find any purchase you made from Solara Energy.
We distributed the SM modules that we purchased from Solara AG to dealers around the country. We do not have any SM modules in stock and therefore, any warranty issues are addressed to the manufacturer who is Solara AG.

--------

I guess that today he claims that I should deal directly with Solara AG instead of you.  Peter fully believes that he shouldn't be involved with this dispute in any way, shape or form.  Solar AG (the German company who produced the panels) won't return any e-mails from me or Peter.  This is rediculous.

Please clarify the questions above.

October 25, 2006
From: larry@semarine.com

Geoff,

These panels were drop shipped to you on 6/19/2003. I remember you contacted us at a later time but I don't remember the date to advise us of your problem.If you can remember that it would be helpful, I will have Fred check his emails for all correspondence which I will forward to Solara AG.

Peter is between a rock and a hard place as he is no longer the distributor. We  are not authorized to solve warranty problems that is a function of the manufacturer.Solara AG's treatment of you is shabby at best and I will do my best to help. As soon as I have all the correspondence in place I contact Solara AG and try to get a resolution.

To answer your questions, I will attempt to get authorization from Solara AG to examine the panels and make a warranty decision. I would then request replacement if the panels are indeed defective which I assume since you probably do not write these e-mails for practice.If we can solve the problem directly with Solara AG that would be best however.

For the record, Peter is incorrect in stating that your recourse is a refund from SE Marine. He is a lawyer and knows better, so am I. He seems to have corrected his position when he states that warranty issues are addressed to Solara AG. That is the correct statement.SE Marine has no authority to process warranty claims but we will try to help .

Larry Janke

October 25, 2006
To: pburcat@solaraenergy.com (Peter Burcat)

Peter,

Perhaps you need to take a class in reading comprehension.  I stated "You may have sent e-mails on my behalf, but I was never copied on them, so I have no proof that anyone else has raised a finger on my behalf."  I never received any copies of the e-mails that you claim to have sent prior to 9/14.  Your e-mail was addressed to me and CCed to Solara AG without any direct instructions or questions to Solara AG.  If all that you're doing is forwarding e-mail that I've already sent to Solara AG to Solara AG again, do you really expect them to do anything more?  A proactive direct approach needed (needs) to be taken.

-- Geoff

October 26, 2006
From: larry@semarine.com
To: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Frank these panels were shipped to the customer 6/19/2003 from Solara Energy. We first became aware of the problem  in February 2005 well within the warranty period. Despite repeated e-mails between the customer, Solara Energy, and your firm, the customer is still with out satisfaction.Solara Energy is of course out of the equation and we have no authority to provide warranty service. Please contact  Mr. Schultz and assist him in solving his problem with the panels. I have attached the emails we have kept regarding this problem. We will help in any way we can, but the ultimate responsibility is yours. Thanks for your assistance.

Larry Janke

November 6 , 2006
From: larry@semarine.com
To: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Frank, are you going to help this customer or just ignore him? Larry

[copy of above e-mail]

November 7 , 2006
To: larry@semarine.com

Larry,

Thanks for your effort, but I suspect that their answer (if they would answer) would be the later.

November 7, 2006
From: larry@semarine.com

I am afraid you are right but I will try a couple more times maybe through another channel such as their customer service. You also might post a couple of blogs on a few sailing chat sites . At least deprive them of future sales.

December 12, 2006
To: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)
To: rudolfe@solara.de (CEO)

Frank and Thomas,

Since you have refused to answer any of my e-mails regarding the warranty replacement of my SM225M panels, I decided that I would post my experience with your company on the Internet.  You'll find the following article posted to approximately 30 Internet forums and/or Internet news-groups.  I will be glad to update this posting should you decide to honor your warranty.

Text of Internet posting

December 18, 2006
From: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Hello Geoffrey

I fully understand your anger, but don't make us here in Germany responsable for all the trouble. Normally it is the job of the importer to do the coverage of the claims, but unfortunately Solara Energy (which has nothing to do with us, only part of the name is the same) is doing nothing and did not reply to you. They have earned the money and when trouble comes up they do nothing - that worries me. I know that doesn't help you, but this is how I see the situation.

One thing is wrong in you below text. The warranty for the Solara M-Series panels has never been 20 years. If Solara Energy has told something - they told a lie and they if they did they did it without our authorisation! These modules have a two years warranty not more, not less and that since the first day we launched that product 8 years ago.

We have made a decission.
We replace your panel, you will get a new one from us!
That decission was made before I received your below e-mail, but the last ten days I have been out for trade show and unable to tell you sooner. The only problem we have now is the transportation. I can do a UPS shipment to the States, but this costs me approx. 200€. I don't want to pay the full rate, do you agree to 50/50 for the transport costs? Or are you able to pick the module up here?

- To arange the shipment we need a delivery adress, please give us your adress.
- Details for the wire transfer of the money you will find on the order confirmation we send to you when you agree to my suggestion.
- Please give me the serial number of the defect solar module.
- I'm leaving the office today for christmas holidays. I return to this desk January 8th. If it is ok for you we preceed further on after that date. If you are in a hurry please contact my colleague Danilo (zithier@solara.de).

I wish you now a merry christmas and a happy new year and much sunshine for your new solar panel.

Kind reagrds
Frank Heise

December 19, 2006
To: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Frank,

I am very happy to hear that you will replace the panels. I agree to pay half of the shipping. Please provide a final shipping estimate based upon shipping the modules to:

[address and phone number deleted]

You will need to provide information how I should transfer the money for the shipping charges to you.

I understand that the importer would normally handle the warranty exchange. However Solara Energy claims that they have no panels in stock and they also state that they don't expect to receive any new panels. It would appear that they are no longer doing business with you. In the USA, warranties are the responsibility of the manufacturer and not the importer or merchant. This is why I was dealing directly with you.

Regarding the warranty period. I have searched the web for "Solara Solar Panel Warranty -woes" and found companies in the US, UK and Australia who have web sites which state that the warranty period is 20 years. I do not understand how all of them stated the same wrong information. I also wonder how you can compete with a 2 year warranty when most other manufactures are offering 20-25 year warranties on their panels. However, this does not matter as the panels failed within 2 years as shown by my extensive e-mail messages on the problem. The panels were installed in June, 2003 and by January of 2005 they had stopped working. The serial numbers on the panels are 184426 and 147930.

I will be glad to update my Internet postings once I have the new panels.

Have a merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Hopefully this will be resolved early next year.

January 15 , 2007
From: frejlich@solara.de (customer service)

Dear customer,

thank you for your order. Please find enclosed our proforma invoice for your pre-payment. For any further questions, do not hesitate contacting us.

With best regards,
SOLARA AG
i.A. Bozena Frejlich
customer service

January 15 , 2007
To: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Frank,

I have received an invoice for $100 euro.  How do I pay you?

[second e-mail] to Frank and customer service:

This invoice is for 1 panel.  I have 2 failed panels.

January 15 , 2007
From: frejlich@solara.de (customer service)

Dear Mr. Schultz, Thank you for your quick response. We will check this case again on Wednesday (Mr. Frank Heise is on a business trip and will be back on 17.01.07). We kindly ask you to transfer the freight costs/handling cost of 100,-€ on our account, any way it is the same costs for two panels. We are sorry for the circumstances and thank you for your comprehension. Best Regards Bozena

January 15 , 2007
To: frejlich@solara.de (customer service)

Bozena,

How do I transfer the money to you?  Do you take credit cards?

January 15 , 2007
From: frejlich@solara.de (customer service)

Hello Geoff,

Unfortunately we can not accept payments via credit cards, could you please contact your bank to transfer the wirement to the first mentioned bank on our proforma invoice

[bank info deleted]
After receive of your payment we will send you the modules. Thank you in advance for your comprehension.

Best Regards Bozena Frejlich

January 16, 2007
To: frejlich@solara.de (customer service)

I just checked with my bank and will cost me $50 US to do the transfer and the funds may not appear in your account for 4-6 weeks!  Clearly this won't work.  I can send you a bank check via FedEx/UPS.  If this is OK, please let me know who to make the check out to and an address to send it to.

-- Geoff

January 19, 2007
To: frejlich@solara.de (customer service)

Bozena,

I sent the following message 3 days ago and I haven't heard anything from you.  Frank was supposed to have come back on the 17th.  What is the status of this?

[copy of above e-mail]

January 21, 2007
To: frejlich@solara.de (customer service), heise@solara.de

Frank & Bozena,

I would very much like to get this resolved within the next few days as I will be leaving to go cruising within a month and I want the new panels installed by then.  I need to verify the following:

1) As we have discussed in all of the e-mails, there are 2 panels which need replacement. 

2) I want to send you a bank check (not a personal check) for 100€.  Is this OK?

3) I need an address that I can send the above check and shipping instructions.

Please, let's try to get this resolved quickly.

-- Geoff

February 1, 2007
To: frejlich@solara.de (customer service), heise@solara.de

[resend of above e-mail]

February 5 , 2007
To: rudolfe@solara.de, heise@solara.de, zithier@solara.de, frejlich@solara.de
CC: fred@semarine.com, larry@semarine.com, pburcat@solaraenergy.com

Thomas, Frank, Danilo and Bozena,

I am very tired of sending e-mail to your company and not getting any replies.  This is totally unacceptable. 

I have been trying to get (2) SM225M panels replaced since March of 2005.  I have hundreds of e-mail messages which have been sent to the store where I purchased the panels (SE Marine), the US distributor (Solara Energy) and to the manufacturer (Solara AG).  Everyone keeps trying to make it the responsibility of someone else to fix my problem.  This has to stop and stop NOW!

In December of 2006 I received an e-mail from Frank Heise stating that you were going to replace my panels if I paid half of the shipping costs.  In January I finally received an invoice from Bozena Frejlich for the shipping and I noted that it was for 1 panel and not the 2 panels that I have been e-mailing about for years.  Once I questioned this and how to provide payment, all e-mails from Frank and Bozena stopped.  I have sent multiple e-mails since then and I have not received any replies. 

I have created a web page containing all of my correspondence.  It's even color coded and indexed.  You can find it at http://www.geoffschultz.org/Solara/e-mail.shtml  This way everyone can see exactly how ridiculous this situation is.

I have also posted an update detailing all of this on about 30 Internet forums related to boating and solar energy.  You can find a copy of it at http://www.geoffschultz.org/Solara/solara_warranty_woes.shtml#update_1.  You'll note that it references the above e-mail log.

At this point I want someone to write back to me and finalize how we are going to get 2 panels shipped to my boat within the next 3 weeks.  After that I'm headed off cruising and I do not want to spend another year without solar panels.

February 5 , 2007
From: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Hello Geoff

What is going on? Where is the problem? For my understand everything was arranged.

The following questions I have answered to you 22nd of January. We aer sitting here and waiting for the checque which you want to send over. Where is the failure? Below are again the answeres. I hope that clears everything? If not let me now.

February 5 , 2007
To: heise@solara.de

Frank,

I never received any e-mail from you or Bozena with these answers.  I will get a check shipped today.

-- Geoff

February 5 , 2007
From: heise@solara.de (Frank Heise)

Ok, I expected something like this. But this not a reason do release informations to all the forums and papers you did. This is not fair, this is not our failure. Stopp this immediately!!!! I trus you that you take it out as soon as possible.

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