Substitution and reallocation — the two remedies around a defaulted slot

This page explains the two mechanisms techs.solar uses around a struggling or defaulted GPO membership: substitution (a pre-default rescue that keeps the slot filled by someone else, with the defaulting member walking away cleanly) and reallocation (a post-default distribution of the gap left in the order). If you’re figuring out what happens overall when a member defaults, start with what-happens-if-a-gpo-defaults and come back here for the mechanics.

Substitution — a rescue before default confirms

Substitution is the option for a member who can no longer fulfil their commitment but wants to avoid a confirmed default on their record. You can propose a substitute from the moment your membership enters late payment — you don’t have to wait for a formal notice.

Who can propose

Only the member whose slot is in trouble. You propose from the order page; substituting isn’t something another installer can initiate on your behalf.

What the proposal contains

Substitute installer — either an existing techs.solar installer account (identified by ID) or an outside installer you’re introducing (their company name, contact email, and phone)
The order-configured substitution fee, if any — set per-order on the coordinator’s side

One pending proposal at a time

You can only have one substitution proposal open at once. If the coordinator rejects it, you can propose a different substitute; while a proposal is pending, you can’t start another.

Coordinator decision

The proposal goes to the order’s coordinator, who reviews and either accepts or rejects. On acceptance:

A new membership is issued to the substitute
Your original commitment transfers to them
The substitution fee becomes payable
Your membership moves straight to substituted — a clean exit; default never confirms on your slot

On rejection, you’re free to propose someone else, cure the payment, or let the situation move toward default confirmation.

Reallocation — settling the gap after default confirms

Reallocation is a separate process, run only after a member has already been marked defaulted. It’s not an alternative that saves the defaulting member — that opportunity has passed. It’s how the order redistributes the quantity the defaulted member was going to take.

When it opens

The coordinator opens a reallocation window on a defaulted slot. Each window has:

A quantity available — the units the defaulted membership was committed to
An opens-at and closes-at timestamp — the bidding window is time-boxed

Who can bid

Only committed members of the same order other than the defaulted one, and only one bid per membership at a time.

How bidding works

You submit a bid stating how many units you want (from 1 up to the total quantity available). The bid enters pending status until the window closes. Before then, you can:

Update your bid — resubmitting overwrites the previous one
Withdraw your bid — pulls you out of that reallocation entirely, no penalty

When the window closes

Settlement is automatic, not a coordinator judgment call. Once closes_at passes, the platform allocates the available quantity pro-rata across every pending bid, weighted by how much each bidder asked for and rounded down to whole units — so if demand exceeds supply, most bidders get a partial amount of what they requested rather than a flat yes/no. A bid only gets rejected outright if its pro-rata share rounds down to zero.

If the window doesn’t fill

Partial cover is normal — bids don’t have to equal the total quantity available. Any uncovered shortfall is handled per the order’s terms; the defaulting member’s status stays at defaulted either way, and reallocation doesn’t undo that.

Where to go from here

The overall cascade, in plain terms: what-happens-if-a-gpo-defaults
The Member Agreement that binds all of this: gpo-member-agreement-overview
How you joined the order in the first place: Joining a group order via the GPO portal

For jurisdiction-specific advice on default remedies, consult a lawyer. This page describes platform behavior, not what a court will decide.