The controlling deadline for most Texas solar claims is the DTPA’s two-year limitations period under Bus. & Com. Code § 17.565 — and because § 17.505 requires 60 days of pre-suit notice first, the practical deadline is roughly 22 months, not 24.
Different theories carry different clocks. Below is how they compare.
Before working out a deadline, it helps to know which route you are on — see every route out of a Texas solar contract.
Not legal advice. Limitations analysis is fact-specific and consequences of getting it wrong are permanent. Speak with a licensed Texas attorney.
What are the deadlines by claim type?
| Claim | Limitations period | Authority | Starts running |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTPA | 2 years | Bus. & Com. Code § 17.565 | When the act occurred or when the consumer discovered or reasonably should have discovered it |
| Breach of written contract | 4 years | Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004 | Generally on breach |
| Common-law fraud | 4 years | Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004 | Generally on discovery |
| Truth in Lending Act damages | 1 year | 15 U.S.C. § 1640(e) | From the violation |
| TILA rescission (where available) | up to 3 years | 15 U.S.C. § 1635(f) | From consummation |
Because DTPA is usually the strongest claim — treble damages and fee shifting — its two-year clock tends to be the operative one even where longer periods exist for other theories.
When does the DTPA clock actually start?
Section 17.565 uses a discovery rule: the period runs from the date the deceptive act occurred or from the date the consumer discovered or, in the exercise of reasonable diligence, should have discovered it.
In residential solar, discovery is rarely the signing date. Common discovery moments:
- The payment jumps at re-amortization, typically 12 to 18 months after closing, when a tax credit paydown assumed in the loan structure never happened.
- The first full summer arrives and the utility bill is nowhere near what was projected.
- A title search during a home sale or refinance surfaces a UCC-1 fixture filing nobody mentioned.
- The installer stops responding, closes, or is acquired.
- The system is never interconnected and months pass with no power produced.
“Should have discovered” does real work here, and it cuts both ways. A defendant will argue the homeowner had constructive knowledge earlier — from the contract itself, from the first bill, from the TILA disclosures. This is contested territory and it is why the analysis needs a lawyer rather than a calculator.
The 180-day extension. Section 17.565 permits extension by up to 180 days where the plaintiff proves the failure to timely commence was caused by the defendant knowingly engaging in conduct solely calculated to induce the plaintiff to refrain from or postpone commencing the action. Stringing a homeowner along with service promises is the fact pattern this addresses.
Who is running out of time right now
Homeowners who signed in 2024. If the deceptive act occurred at signing and no later discovery date applies, two years from a 2024 signing expires during 2026. Subtract 60 days for notice.
Homeowners whose payment jumped in 2024. If re-amortization is the discovery moment, the same math applies from that date.
Homeowners with 2023 contracts relying on a discovery argument. These are the closest to the edge and the most fact-dependent.
If you are anywhere near these, the pre-suit notice is the near-term action item, and § 17.505(b) provides that notice is excused where it is impracticable because suit must be filed to prevent limitations from expiring.
Do TDLR and AG complaints have deadlines?
Agency complaints are not lawsuits and are governed by agency practice rather than the limitations statutes. But jurisdiction turns on your contract date:
- Contracts entered on or after September 1, 2025 → TDLR accepts complaints against residential solar retailers.
- Contracts entered before September 1, 2025 → Texas Attorney General, Consumer Protection Division.
- Complaints against licensed electrical contractors for installation or repair work → TDLR, regardless of contract date.
- Enforcement provisions of Chapter 1806, including § 1806.201 prohibited acts and § 1806.207 cancellation-and-refund authority, take effect September 1, 2026.
Filing an agency complaint does not toll the DTPA limitations period. Treat the two tracks as running in parallel, not in sequence.
What to do if you think you may be close to a deadline
- Fix your dates. Signing date, installation date, interconnection date, first payment, the date any payment changed, the date you first realized something was wrong.
- Do not wait for a complaint to resolve. Agency processes take months and do not stop the clock.
- Get the pre-suit notice question in front of an attorney now. Section 17.505 notice is a 60-day gate.
- Preserve everything. Screenshot texts, export email threads, back up monitoring app data, save every bill.
- Do not sign a settlement or release to buy time. A release can extinguish claims you have not yet evaluated.
If you are close to a deadline, how our process works explains what happens after you submit. Service overviews: Texas solar contract cancellation and cancelling a solar loan in Texas. Local pages: Austin solar cancellation, Dallas solar cancellation.
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Sources: Tex. Bus. & Com. Code §§ 17.505, 17.565; Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004; 15 U.S.C. §§ 1635, 1640; Tex. Occ. Code §§ 1806.201, 1806.207; TDLR program guidance.