Sanyo Energy - Solar Panels Class Action Settlement

• The court granted final approval in this settlement July 8, 2021.

Sanyo and Panasonic agreed to a class action lawsuit settlement to resolve claims of solar panel delamination.

The settlement benefits consumers who purchased and installed Sanyo solar panels (model series HIP-xxxBA2, BA3 and BA5) for residential use or purchased a residential property with these solar panels installed on it.

Solar panels must show visible “delamination” in order to be eligible for payment under the settlement. This includes one or more adjacent sections of circular delamination where each section is 25 mm or greater and was not caused by external damage. Linear or dot delamination is not covered by the settlement.

Sanyo manufactured several models of solar panels for use in residential and business properties. Panasonic purchased Sanyo’s line of solar panels and now distributes these products, according to EcoDirect.

According to plaintiffs in the Sanyo class action lawsuit, the company’s solar panels are defective. Over time, the covered models can allegedly “delaminate,” meaning the laminated parts of the solar panels separate.

The Sanyo and Panasonic solar panel class action lawsuit contends delamination can cause poor performance in the solar panels — leading to a decrease in power generation. In addition to causing poor performance, solar panel delamination caused “serious and undisputed safety risks,” including the risk of house fires, the plaintiffs claim.

Despite being aware of the issue, Sanyo and Panasonic allegedly failed to correctly apply their limited 20-year power warranty to delaminated solar panels. In fact, according to the plaintiffs, the companies refused to inspect delaminated solar panels in an attempt to deny warranty claims. As a result, consumers had to pay out of pocket to have delaminated solar panels refunded, repaired or replaced after power output fell below the warranty’s threshold, the class action lawsuit contends.

Sanyo and Panasonic haven’t admitted any wrongdoing but agreed to resolve the allegations surrounding their solar panels with a class action lawsuit settlement .

Under the terms of the Sanyo and Panasonic solar class action settlement, class members can recover either a cash payment or a replacement for their delaminated solar panels.

Payments from the settlement will be equal to the original purchase price of the solar panels after applying depreciation. Depreciation of solar panel costs will consider the time that has passed and how much, if any, time is left on the panels’ power warranty. For example, if a class member purchased a solar panel for $700 10 years ago, they would receive half of that cost — or $350 — as a settlement payment.

Replacement panels provided by the settlement may be a different size, color, shape, model, manufacturer or power level compared to the original Sanyo solar panels purchased by class members. However, the settlement guarantees that all replacement panels provided will generate the required power level under Sanyo’s 20-year power warranty.

The deadline for exclusion and objection passed on May 28, 2021.

The final approval hearing for the solar settlement took place on July 8, 2021.

In order to receive compensation from the solar panel delamination settlement, class members must submit a valid claim form by either Dec. 31, 2029, or 20 years after the original purchase date — whichever is earlier.

As part of this claim, you are required to provide proof of ownership for each Sanyo solar module for which you are seeking a settlement remedy, in the form of EITHER (A) or (B) below:

A. Evidence of the purchase date, the original purchase price and a copy of the contract for installation of the Sanyo solar module that includes the model number of that module

OR, if you are unable to provide this evidence