If you want to cancel your Sunrun contract before installation, you have a penalty-free right to do so within three business days of signing, as long as the sale happened at your home or another non-retail location. That right comes from the FTC’s Cooling-Off Rule. After that window closes, cancellation is still possible before the panels go up, but it depends on what your contract says, what Sunrun will agree to, and whether you have grounds to challenge the agreement.
The Three-Day Cooling-Off Right
The FTC’s Cooling-Off Rule, codified at 16 CFR Part 429, covers any consumer sale of $25 or more where a seller personally solicits the deal and you sign somewhere other than the seller’s permanent place of business.1eCFR. 16 CFR 429.0 – Definitions Your living room, a hotel ballroom, a convention booth, a restaurant, your workplace — all qualify. If a Sunrun rep came to your door or you signed at an event, you’re covered.
Cancel within three business days and Sunrun cannot charge you a penalty or hold you to any obligation. Any deposit returns, any instrument you signed gets canceled, and any security interest filed against your property gets released.2eCFR. 16 CFR 429.1 – The Rule
One boundary worth stating: if you walked into a Sunrun retail office or showroom and signed there, the Cooling-Off Rule does not apply. In that case your cancellation rights depend entirely on the contract terms and your state’s consumer protection laws.
How to Count the Three Business Days
The deadline is midnight of the third business day after you signed. Saturdays count. Sundays and federal holidays do not. Sign on Wednesday, your deadline is midnight Saturday. Sign on Friday, Saturday is day one, Monday day two, Tuesday day three.
The clock starts only when you’ve received both a completed copy of the contract and the required Notice of Cancellation form, in duplicate, in the same language used during the sales pitch.2eCFR. 16 CFR 429.1 – The Rule If Sunrun skipped that step, the three-day window hasn’t started. That’s a federal violation and, in practical terms, it keeps your right to cancel open until the company fixes the problem.
Write down the date you signed. If you’re even one day late, the free exit disappears.
Sending the Cancellation Notice
Your contract packet should include a two-part Notice of Cancellation form. Fill it in, sign it, date it, and send one copy to Sunrun at the address printed on the form. Keep the other.2eCFR. 16 CFR 429.1 – The Rule
No form, or you’ve lost it? Write your own letter. The regulation accepts “any other written notice” as a valid cancellation. Include your name, the contract or account number, the signing date, and a clear statement that you are canceling.
Send it by USPS certified mail with return receipt requested. Your cancellation is legally effective when you mail it, not when Sunrun receives it, so the postmark is your proof.3FTC. Buyers Remorse: The FTCs Cooling-Off Rule May Help You can also call Sunrun customer service at (855) 478-6786 to confirm, but never rely on a phone call alone.4Sunrun. Contact Us Verbal confirmations vanish. Postmarks don’t.
What Sunrun Has to Do Once You Cancel
After receiving your notice, Sunrun has ten business days to return any payments, cancel anything you signed, and release any security interest against your property.2eCFR. 16 CFR 429.1 – The Rule A deposit should come back within roughly two weeks.
If any equipment was delivered to your home before cancellation, make it available for pickup in the condition you received it. You are not required to ship anything back at your own cost. If Sunrun doesn’t collect within 20 days of your notice, you can keep or dispose of the items with no further obligation.3FTC. Buyers Remorse: The FTCs Cooling-Off Rule May Help
Get written confirmation that the contract is voided and your balance is zero. Keep it indefinitely.
Your State May Give You More Time
The federal three-day rule is a floor. Some states extend the window for home improvement or door-to-door contracts, and some add requirements around how the cancellation notice must be delivered or what language it must be in. If Sunrun failed to provide the notice properly, several states keep the cancellation right open indefinitely until the seller cures the defect. Your state attorney general’s consumer protection division can tell you what applies where you live.
After the Three Days but Before Installation
This is where most people actually land. The sales rep left weeks ago, buyer’s remorse has set in, and the panels aren’t up yet. No installation means Sunrun hasn’t sunk its biggest costs into your project, which helps. But you no longer have an automatic right to walk away.
What’s possible depends on the agreement. Solar leases and power purchase agreements (PPAs) typically run 10 to 25 years, and exiting one usually involves a buyout.5Sunrun. Power Purchase Agreement (PPA): What It Means in 2026 If you financed a purchased system through a loan, your options turn on the loan documents.
Read the Contract First
Go through the agreement cover to cover. Look for a cancellation clause, a termination fee schedule, or a buyout formula. Some contracts build in a longer cancellation window than federal law requires. If yours does and you’re still inside it, use it.
If the contract doesn’t address early termination, call (855) 478-6786 and ask for a current buyout quote in writing.4Sunrun. Contact Us Don’t settle for a number given over the phone. First quotes are often not final, especially pre-installation when the company has little invested. Pre-installation cancellations are far cheaper than mid-contract buyouts on an active system, which can run into tens of thousands of dollars.
Grounds That Strengthen Your Position
Some circumstances give you real leverage:
- Sunrun never provided the required FTC cancellation form at signing, or provided it improperly. Your cooling-off period may not have started at all. This is your strongest card.
- The salesperson’s claims about savings, production, or cost don’t match the contract. That can support rescission under state consumer protection laws.
- Pressure tactics, refusing to leave, or signing up elderly or non-English-speaking homeowners without proper disclosures can violate both federal and state law.
- Your municipality denied the permit, or your HOA won’t approve the installation. Sunrun may agree to cancel without penalty because the project cannot move forward.
Document everything. Save emails. Take notes on calls with the date, time, and representative’s name. Keep copies of every letter you send.
UCC Filings on Your Property
On most Sunrun leases and PPAs, the panels remain the company’s property. To protect that interest, Sunrun commonly files a UCC-1 financing statement with your state’s Secretary of State. It’s meant to cover only the solar equipment, not your home.
These filings can still show up in title searches when you sell or refinance. A buyer’s title company may flag it as a lien, which can delay or kill a deal, particularly if the description is broad or sloppy.
After cancellation, Sunrun should file a UCC-3 termination statement removing the original filing. You can demand this in writing once your obligation ends. If the company drags its feet, send a certified letter with a clear deadline. Verify removal through your state Secretary of State’s UCC database. The process can take several weeks to a couple of months even when it goes smoothly, so don’t assume silence means it’s handled.
Where to Escalate If Sunrun Won’t Cooperate
If normal channels stall, escalate in stages. Inside Sunrun, ask for a supervisor or the executive resolution team. A formal written complaint tends to get better attention than a service queue ticket.
Outside the company, several agencies take complaints:
- Your state attorney general’s consumer complaint division. Solar complaints have been rising nationally, and a formal filing creates an official record that can push a company to settle.
- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, if your complaint involves financing terms, deceptive lending, or unauthorized charges.
- The Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, for Cooling-Off Rule violations. The FTC doesn’t resolve individual disputes but tracks patterns for enforcement.
- Your state public utility commission, in states that regulate solar retailers.
One warning: keep making your payments while you fight the cancellation. Missed payments can damage your credit and hand Sunrun grounds for collection. The goal is a clean exit, not a second problem stacked on the first.