Solar Restitution Program

The Solar Restitution Program (SRP) is an initiative in the Illinois Shines and Illinois Solar for All programs to provide financial compensation to customers who suffered harm through their participation in the programs. In the first phase, restitution will be available for customers who were promised, but didn’t receive, a pass-through incentive by a Program Approved Vendor (AV). The Illinois Power Agency developed this initiative with the Program Administrator of the Illinois Shines program.

A customer is eligible to receive funds from the SRP if the customer meets the following criteria:

• The customer submitted a complaint to the Program Administrator and the complaint was submitted within two years of the date of the customer’s harm or the SRP launch (whichever is later).
• The customer cooperated with the Illinois Shines complaint investigation process.
• The Program Administrator verified the customer was promised a lump sum pass-through payment, the AV received the incentive payment from the utility, but the AV did not deliver the pass-through payment to the customer.
• The Program Administrator closed the complaint given the AV’s unwillingness to pay the customer the promised share of the pass-through incentive payment, and there is no reasonable likelihood that the AV will pay the customer the promised pass-through amount.
• The customer submitted a restitution claim within six months of the complaint being closed (or from the date of the SRP’s launch, whichever is later).

The “date of harm” is the date that the customer reasonably should have known that the Approved Vendor had failed to timely pass through their promised REC incentive payment. The Program Administrator calculates this date as 90 days from the date the Approved Vendor invoiced the utility for the customer’s REC incentive payment.

Customers are not eligible if:

• They did not file a complaint with the Program Administrator first and/or they filed a complaint but the complaint has not been closed.
• They missed the complaint or claim filing deadlines (deadlines are explained in the following FAQ).
• They were a 5% or greater owner or high-level management of the entity that caused the harm.
• They have already received full or partial compensation for their missed incentive payment from the Approved Vendor, Designee, or other entity involved in the transaction.
• They did not return the required signed attestation/assignment of rights form.

• Complaint: Within two years of the harm or SRP launch (whichever is later).
• Claim: Within six months of the complaint being closed or SRP launch (whichever is later).
• Assignment of rights form: Within 30 days of submission (if not completed at the time of claim submission).

• Up to $30,000 per individual project.
• Your claim amount may also be subject to proration if additional customers filed successful restitution claims which pushes the total amount of claim awards beyond the $200,000 per Approved Vendor (total payout cap).
  • Please note: If the maximum funding limit cap has been reached, you will not be eligible to receive an award for your claim unless and until the AV cap is expanded in a future phase of the Solar Restitution Program. Please continue to check the Solar Restitution Program website for updates regarding the program and availability of funds.

You must:

1. File a complaint with the Program Administrator and cooperate fully.
2. Wait for your complaint to be investigated and closed.
3. Submit an online SRP Claim Form or, if you are unable to complete the form yourself online, the Program Administrator may complete the form for you over the phone.
4. If you don’t complete the form yourself online, you will then be required to sign and return the assignment of rights form within 30 days from claim submission.

You can file a complaint on our website here.  Or, if you are unable to file a complaint online, you can call the Program Administrator at (877) 783-1820, and they can assist you in filing a complaint.

The Program Administrator investigates your complaint and, if we confirm you were not timely paid your promised REC incentive amount and your Approved Vendor is not willing or able to pay your promised amount, we will close your complaint and then you will be eligible to file a claim for Solar Restitution.

You can fill out the SRP Claim Form here.

The assignment of rights is a form where a customer agrees that, if they receive a solar restitution award and later their Approved Vendor pays them part – or all – of their promised REC payment, the customer will repay the Solar Restitution Program their claim award amount to prevent overpayment.

The Program Administrator will investigate your claim to determine eligibility and claim award amount. The Program Administrator will reach out if it requires any additional information from you. Please note that the Program Administrator anticipates that the vendor cap of $200,000 may be met for some Approved Vendors in Phase I of the Solar Restitution Program. The Program Administrator is therefore using filing windows (periods of time) to accept claims against a single Approved Vendor, so that it is not just “first come, first served.”  If two or more customers from the same Approved Vendor file claims within 30 days, then the filing period for additional claimants will extend from 30 days to 90 days. While the Program Administrator will investigate claims filed throughout that 90-day period, it may not finalize any awards until after that 90-day period is complete.

A filing period refers to the specific timeframe within which a claim must be submitted to be considered valid and eligible for restitution (as funds allow).

An Approved Vendor cap, or AV cap, refers to the maximum dollar amount or limit that can be awarded for harm caused by a specific Approved Vendor under the Illinois Shines program. The current AV cap amount is $200,000. The Program Administrator expects that this cap will be met for certain Approved Vendors during Phase I of the Solar Restitution Program. Once the cap is hit, we will continue to accept claims against that Approved Vendor; however, we will not be able to pay out any additional awards against the Approved Vendor unless, and until, the cap is expanded during a later phase of the Solar Restitution Program.

A waiting period is the amount of time that must pass after a claim is submitted before the determination of any potential payout can be reached and claim payouts can be awarded.

Please refer to chart “Approved Vendor Cap and Claim Prioritization” for further information related to waiting periods and potential claim payout timeframes.

Claimants will have 30 calendar days to respond to the Program Administrator’s request for additional information. If the requested information is not provided within that timeframe, the claim will be closed.

The claimant may still reopen their claim in the future; however, they will lose their current position in line, and their eligibility for restitution funds will depend on whether any funds are still available.

You will be notified via email with the reason(s) and any next steps, which may include starting the process with filing a complaint, re-filing a claim after your complaint is closed, resubmitting missing information, or waiting for future program expansions.

Yes. Ineligible customers will be provided with appeal instructions from the Program Administrator when they receive their denial notice.

The Program Administrator can assist you in completing the claim form. If they do, you must still sign and return the assignment of rights form separately.

Yes, partial claims are awarded when the customer’s claim amount is impacted by either the $30,000 individual cap or the $200,000 total AV cap. Claimants may receive supplemental payments if those caps are later adjusted, and funding remains for additional payments. Claimants eligible for supplemental payments will be notified by the Program Administrator if and when they become available and will not be required to resubmit a new claim to receive these payments.

The Program Administrator and Illinois Power Agency intends to expand the program to capture additional types of harm. Consumers may track any changes to the program on the Illinois Shines program website.