Court jails large-scale solar panel scammer, 800 victims in France
Over 1,000 people worldwide paid for panels that were never delivered
The scammer has also been ordered to pay back victims
anatoliy_gleb/Shutterstock
The former director of a solar panel company has been sentenced to 18 months in prison in the south of France after scamming more than 1,000 people worldwide.
More than 800 of the victims are based in France.
People were convinced to sign up for solar panel installations through the man’s company – which were never carried out – however they were also not refunded for their purchases.
The director was sentenced for misleading commercial practices, breach of trust, and misuse of company assets in Béziers (Hérault) on September 9.
As well as 18 months in prison and six suspended on condition of fulfilling two years of probation conditions, he has been ordered to pay back all of the victims and pay a €20,000 fine.
In addition, he is banned from running a business for five years within France, but is known to have multiple businesses, including some abroad, as well as shares in another establishment in Agde (also in Hérault).
He must publicise his conviction for at least two months.
Three properties he owns have been seized, and he must also file taxes he had not paid to the French government.
Read more: Electricity price rises in France: are solar panels a good solution?
New company owner committed suicide
NSCom, a company based in Agde, installed solar panels both in France and abroad, however in late 2018 it stopped paying its suppliers and could not carry out installations for customers.
However it continued to sign people up to contracts and take payments, mounting up total debts towards customers and suppliers of around €800,000.
An employee of the company reported the fraudulent practices to the Direction départementale de protection des populations (DDPP) in Hérault, raising the attention of the criminal investigation team at the Montpellier police department. The company had unfulfilled orders in France for which customers had paid €417,000.
The man then sold the company to an apparent friend, who was unable to deal with the firms debts or honour the contracts to customers.
The new owner tried unsuccessfully to annul the sale. A few months after buying NSCom, he died by suicide.
The former director disputes the case and will be pleading for acquittal, with his lawyer saying there were "inconsistencies’", particularly around the actions of the new owner.
“At the time of the sale, the last owner knew that he had the means to work. As soon as his bank loans were refused, he lodged a complaint against the founder of the company,” said the lawyer, who also said some clients of NSCom had “confused an after-sales service with ordering” of panels.
Solar panel scams have risen in France as panels become increasingly common in French households.
NSCom was originally founded by a French man and an British woman.
Read more: Solar panel scams affect one in three buyers in France
Read more: What aid is available to install home solar panels in France in 2024?
If you have been the victim of a scam, you can lodge a complaint with the police or gendarmerie or by writing to the public prosecutor.
If the scam took place entirely online, then you can report it here, which is the government site to report scams. You can translate the page to English if you need to.
You can also let us know by emailing feedback@connexionfrance.com
