It seems that dozens of victims of the Sustainability Center of the Netherlands are not getting their money back for paid solar panels. They have come to that painful realization now that the solar panel company has 9 tons of debt. Deeply frustrated, they are left behind, often having advanced thousands of euros.
To make his house more sustainable, Gust de Jong from Alphen ordered solar panels from Sustainability Center Netherlands on 8 December. He paid more than 1900 euros. But the moment they should have been placed on the roof, De Jong heard nothing more from the company. “When I called, I couldn’t get in touch anymore. The phones were cut off a day later.”
Martien de Rooij from Bosschenhoofd also bought twenty solar panels from the company in Terheijden. They were supposed to be posted at the end of January, but that never happened. However, he paid almost 3000 euros.
He was convinced that everything would be fine, he says. “The story was good and we just clicked. But the trust I had in the company was not right. I was just scammed, I’m sure of that. And I can whistle for those 3000 euros.”
“I can drive to them and demand my money back, but the tap is closed. There is nothing more to be gained,” he says. De Rooij has now teamed up with another company.
They are two of the dozens of people who have paid thousands of euros for undelivered solar panels. Now that it is clear that the company declared bankrupt last month has more than 900,000 in debt, they seem to be left empty-handed.
According to the curator, there is no more money in the account of the Sustainability Center of the Netherlands. And even if directors are held personally liable, private individuals are still at the back of the line of creditors. First up is the tax authorities with more than 350,000 euros.