Solar tariff cuts - one week on

One week on from the Governments feed-in tariff cuts, it's becoming clear that, as with any financial decision these days, there are winners and losers.

It's the losers that have inevitably drawn the most press, and with good reason, as the tariff cuts have meant the shelving of most residential projects that would have seen solar panels installed on social homes, helping reduce residents energy bills, whilst making a tidy profit for the investors and local councils etc.

Birmingham Council has said it will continue with plans to install solar pv (electricity generating) panels on 1,200 homes. According to Inside Housing - Brighton & Hove say the tariff cuts will make their social housing project "very difficult".

The effects at Solar Panel Quoter have also been noticed, with a sharp decline in 'Free install' enquiries, whilst many of the 'paid for' installation enquiries have been keen to beat the 12th December deadline by getting their installations completed asap.

And we've also seen a lot of new Solar Panel Installers, join our homeowner matching service too.

photo credit: evan courtney

Solar Panel's on BBC's Watchdog

The people's consumer champions - BBC's Watchdog - reported in yesterday evening's programme that some homeowners were not getting the free solar installations they'd paid an 'arranging fee' for.

Their investigation centred around one company that were charging an 'arranging fee' of £500 to homeowners who were interested in a free solar panel installation. The fee included an on-site survey as to the suitability of the property for a free solar installation and, if it passed, and the owner wanted to go ahead, then the £500 fee was being charged.

In the studio, the 'owner' of the company being investigated, following consumer complaints, maintained that many homeowners had been refunded, whilst others had received their free installations. The problem, he said,  had arisen because the installation company he was using changed their criteria over which were suitable properties for their free installation scheme.

Solar Panel Quoter wants to assure homeowners that we never charge homeowners a single penny for using our free online solar panel quoting website or our subsequent offer of matching your location and project with our database of registered solar installation companies.

Our service is completely free. The companies we find you will all offer their best quote and if you decide to go ahead with one of them, then you'll enter into a usual customer / contractor agreement for payment and completion of the work. Solar Panel Quoter doesn't take any commissions from completed or quoted for installations either.

Our service not only lets you see the details of the (maximum of) 3 companies we've found for you, it also lets you see any homeowner feedback (good or bad)  from previous homeowners who've used our service.

The Watchdog website itself recommends homeowners try and get 3 quotes for comparison before deciding which company is right for you. It also mentions the importance of genuine testimonials and previous customer feedback.

Watchdog mentioned the MCS accreditation scheme - only company members of this scheme can authorise an installation as being fit for the Government Tariffs. It should be noted that some companies, in our experience who are not MCS accredited are usually working in partnership with another MCS registered company who will 'sign off' their installation.

No doubt, you'll want to ask these sorts of questions when our recommended companies make contact with you, to arrange their survey of your property and offer their quotation.

photo credit: jelly dude

Solar Panel Quoter can offer instant online quotes for Photovoltaic (electricity generating) and Solar Hot Water panel installations across the UK. We can also advise on Free Solar Installations. The service is completely free to homeowners, but could save you pounds.

The questions about solar panels you've been asking Solar Panel Quoter - Part 2.

Continuing on from Friday's post when we revealed the most common questions users of Solar Panel Quoter have been asking us about solar panels and installations, today, we reveal your most common questions about 'Free Solar Panel' schemes.

How free solar PV offers work.
The company installs the solar panels on south, south-west or south-east facing roofs.
The company pays for the installation, connection charges and the maintenance of the panels.
The home owner benefits from free electricity from the panels (could be a saving worth £100 or 20% of annual usage, depending on how much of the solar energy is used on site)*

Any electricity that is not used is exported into the local electricity network. Any income associated with this is likely to go to the installation company. As the owner of the solar panels, the company receives the full Feed-in-Tariffs income (approx £600 per year)*

*this is based on a 2kWp system which is expected to be fairly typical in size for most homes.

These free solar PV offers are also referred to as "rent my roof space" schemes with the solar panel owner simply 'renting' the roof space from the customer.

Q. Who’s paying for the equipment? Is that in full? Who owns the equipment? (and is that all of the equipment – i.e. meter, wires inside building etc – or just equipment on the roof/in the back yard?)
We would expect anyone offering this scheme to pay for the equipment in full. This includes the solar panels, the inverter, metering and wiring of system. All equipment is likely to be owned by the company with many handing over ownership after 25 years.

Q. Who gets (a) the generation tariff, (b) the export tariff, (c) the ‘free’ electricity?
We expect the company providing the free technology to receive the full generation tariff and the export tariff (around £25 per year for a 2kWp system), and for you to benefit from the free electricity.

Q. Who pays for maintenance and repairs (e.g. if the DC/AC inverter fails after 8 years)?
All maintenance and repairs should be paid for by the company installing the equipment, as they are likely to be the owner of the technology. You should check for this in any agreements.

Q. Who will insure the equipment? Against what?
It’s likely that you won’t own the equipment so you should not have to insure it. It is therefore up to the company to insure their equipment against fire, theft, wind damage etc.

Q. Who will be liable if the equipment causes damage to my family or my neighbours? Or if it causes damage to mine or my neighbours’ building or electrics?
This may be difficult to answer as you would have to prove that the damage was negligence on the part of the company installing the equipment e.g. faulty wiring. Any faulty work should be reported to the company immediately for them to rectify.

Q. What happens if I decide I want to pay off the remaining costs early? Can I have the FIT re-assigned to me?
This will depend on the contract drawn up between you and the company.

Q. What happens if I move house and the new owners don’t want to ‘inherit’ the deal?
It’s highly unlikely the company offering the panels will want to sell them back or allow you to sell along with house. Therefore the agreement will stick with the property and you will have to consider this when selling the property.

Q. Do the companies give any performance guarantees for the equipment? (and what happens if it stops working and generating FITs ?)
This is the company’s risk as it relates to performance of the system and quality of products used. However most PV cells have manufacturer performance guarantees ranging from 20-25 years so this shouldn’t be a problem.

Q. Do I need to let my mortgage company and/or buildings insurer know that this installation has taken place? Will I need their permission?
We recommend telling your mortgage provider about this before going ahead.

Q. Who is responsible for addressing any planning issues or electricity distribution company notification requirements? Who pays any associated costs?
We expect the company providing the offer to be responsible for all of this.

Q. What happens if the company which owns the equipment ceases to exist or goes into liquidation?
This will vary for each situation. However, because the system generates an income then the liquidators may decide to keep it running in order to pay off creditors.

photo credit: aral balkan

News from Home Improvement Quotes homeowner newsletter

Our 'parent website' Home Improvement Quotes publishes a weekly email newsletter to it's readers, which covers a variety of topical home improvements as well as highlighting some great home improvement project savings and discounts they've come across.

This weeks newsletter featured a story regarding a 'free installation' solar panel company that's teamed up with a company to offer free monitoring equipment as part of any future installations.

You can read the full article here.

To read the full newsletter, click here.

photo credit: kevin lim

Free solar panel installation schemes - how many homeowners rejected?

One 'free solar panel installation scheme' company alone has received some 42,000 enquiries from households interested in renting out their roof to them, in return for cheaper energy, during the Summer.

What we don't know is how many applications have been rejected due to individual property suitability - location, roof position, roof size and the presence of overhanging obstacles etc.

These installation companies are carrying all the risk and expense of a major installation, so it's not unreasonable to expect them to be quite fussy over which properties they deem suitable for qualification. If you are rejected, it doesn't necessarily follow that your property is unsuitable for installing solar energy, merely that it may not always produce the maximum return on available direct sunlight

Our Solar Panel Quoting website has also seen a massive increase in homeowner usage - people getting online quotes, looking to compare installation costs and the benefits of keeping all of the feed-in tariff contributions to themselves, by using both locally and nationally, recognised installation companies.

Many of these installation companies are offering some really good deals at the moment - one was offering free home energy surveys, whilst others have gone further by offering free cavity wall and loft insulation with their installations. Cavity wall insulation alone can save an average household around £110 a year off their energy bills - a CO2 saving of around 560kg a year. Loft insulation will save you a further £145 a year and save 730kg of CO2 (source: Energy Saving Trust). To make the most of your renewable energy generating installation, it's important to reduce your homes energy usage as much as possible (hence the free energy surveys etc.).

What the figures do illustrate is that more and more homeowners are considering solar energy as a viable energy source for their homes. Whether they're able (or willing) to take advantage of a free installation offer or would rather keep all the revenue generated for their own pockets, it's clear that renewable energy is now mainstream.

photo credit: peter kaminski

Free solar panel venture for industrial premises announced

Renewable News reported how a UK company, previously known for installing industrial scale wind turbines on commercial buildings is going to be offering solar panels installations 'free-of-charge'.

The news will be welcome to any business that has looked at reducing energy overheads but lacked the finance to install their own solar system.

Solar Power Direct aims to target roofs in excess of 4,000 square metres.

Read the full report by Renewable News by clicking here.

photo credit: seier seier

10,000 Birmingham homes to get solar panels

In a scheme part-funded by commercial banks and the council, 10,000 Birmingham homes are to get solar panels fitted.

The council owned properties will benefit from a new 'green deal' which will see the UK's biggest retro-fitted energy upgrade.

The proceeds from the retrofits will be used to re-finance a scheme that it's hoped will be enough to re-furbish a further 200,000 homes.

Residents will see savings on their annual fuel bills, despite a planned levy to help repay the councils loans for the installation costs.

The council has said it will start by identifying those households with the greatest social need, singling out people in fuel poverty.

The longterm goal is to upgrade all 420,000 homes in Birmingham city which will include owner occupied and the privately rented sector.

Way to go Birmingham! Is your city doing anything similar? We'd love to hear about it in the Comments below.

photo credit: uggboy

Are free solar panel installation schemes a good idea? Article update.

Free Solar Panel Installation Offers - UPDATE

There's been much hype in the national media recently about companies offering free solar panels and installation. One company in particular is quoted as aiming to offer free solar panels to 2.5 million homes in the UK.

Of course, there is usually a qualifying criteria - for example which part of the UK you live in, the amount of available roof space, the direction that roof points in and whether the roof is shaded by overhanging trees or structures on your own or neighbouring property are all taken into account besides other criteria unique to that particular company.

What do you gain from a free installation?

For a start, the solar panels and their installation is carried out free of charge to yourself. Once the installation is complete, you get to enjoy the daytime energy cost savings for using your own produced energy.

You'll also benefit from a hoped for increase in your property's value should you decide to sell it at some point in the future. The 'deal' stays with the property rather than the owner so everything is just transferred to the new owner.

After 25 years, you'll also own the panels out-right. (25 years being the normal period of such agreements).

The money you would have spent on the installation can either say in your savings or be used to fund another home improvement etc.

What do you loose by having a free solar panel installation?

You'll forfeit any subsidies or grants payable to yourself for the installation and any excess energy which is 'sold back' to the national grid will be credited to the company that 'own' the panels rather than you the homeowner. Think of it as letting your roof to a 3rd party for their own financial gain.

If you do sell your property before the end of the agreement, prospective buyers may be put off by the 'taking over' of an agreement they weren't originally involved in. There could be extra legal hurdles to jump through to complete a sale. Some people have reported having to remove panels to attract a buyer.

You may own the panels outright after 25 years (or whatever the agreement period is for) but you'll then be responsible for their maintenance and replacement of failed units if you want to continue enjoying the energy savings they produce.

(It should be noted that although todays panels are usually rated to last for 25 years, many perform for 5 or 10 years afterwards without replacement).

We haven't seen anything that outlines who's financially responsible for the panels i.e house insurance cover in case they're damaged by fire, structural collapse or storm damage etc. We're assuming faulty panels would be replaced by the installer f.o.c? Worth asking if you get the opportunity.

Remember there's no such thing as a free lunch

Most independent consumer watchdogs are warning homeowners to explore such free panel offers with their "eyes wide open". Remember there's no such thing as a 'free lunch'.

Some have gone further by comparing the cost savings of a free panel scheme compared with taking a 10 year personal loan for your own installation and enjoying all the rebates and tariffs. Unsurprisingly, the figures came out in favour of funding your own installation.

Indeed, some believe we could soon see these 'free-fitting' companies starting to offer extra incentives like cash sums up front or a share of the energy generated profits as more of these companies spring up around us. They'll all be chasing the same housing stock / addresses after all.

Free solar panel installations still have a place

However, that option may not be available to everyone, so the free panel schemes do have an important part to play in the mass uptake of renewable energy generation in the UK. if you're approached by a free solar panel 'deal' company, after getting their figures, why not use Solar Panel Quoter to get up to 3 independent quotes in writing from other local solar panel installation companies and draw your own comparisons.

Either way, early uptake of either a free panel offer or installing your own system is essential if you're to make the most of the rebates and energy tariffs. We've already seen other european countries reducing their tariff levels (which apply to new applicants after the tariff change), claiming financial ruin if they keep them at their inception levels, such is the popularity of such schemes. Remember, the feed-in tariff scheme is fixed at 25 years starting from this April (2010) just gone, and applies to photovoltaic (electricity generating) installations only.

You'll find more information and news stories on renewable energy on our popular daily renewable energy blog - and free installation schemes in our recent blog post: click here to read their free solar panels article.

photo credit: gary soup

Advice is to 'be wary' of free solar panels offers

Just last week, a solar panel company announced on national radio a scheme to install solar panels for free on 100,000 qualifying homes in the UK.

They're not the first and doubtless will be the last as these companies realise the investment and earnings potential, fuelled by the Governments feed-in tariffs for photovoltaic solar energy production.

However, as Renewable Energy World reminds homeowners, quoting a passage from an article in the Guardian newspaper, homeowners should approach these free solar panel schemes with their "eyes wide open".

For example, homeowners, even after taking a 10 year loan in consideration, could save three times the amount on their energy bills compared to the same period on a typical free solar panels scheme.

Of course, the solar panel companies are bearing all the risk - their money is actually paying for the panels and the installation in return for the subsidies and feed-in tariff amounts on energy produced.

However, with the recent news that Spain had cut its feed-in tariffs, following on from Germany and Italy, then it's not unreasonable to suspect that at some point there may be a forced similar cut in UK tariffs, which could alter the situation and leave the homeowner the winner rather than the solar companies.

Read the full article here which includes a downloadable fact sheet of 24 questions to ask before you agree to a free solar panel installation agreement.

To get your own installation quote, visit Solar Panel Quoter, type in a few details about your property and let us do the rest.

photo credit: woodleywonderworks

Getting a solar panel installation for free

You may be aware that certain companies have started offering free solar panel installations. The catch? They get to keep the Governments installation grants and any money from the sale of excess generated electricity that's sold back to the National Grid.

There are usually certain qualifying conditions - re size of roof and direction it faces.

As Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert consumer website reports, you'll still benefit from lower electricity bills and of course you don't have to find the money for any installation costs.

However, it may be worth checking out the alternative - particularly if you intend to stay in the property for a long time.

There's a useful pro's and con's section in Martin's report as well as some example costs and savings comparisons, depending on whether you install yourself or take advantage of a 'free panels' and the whole consumer piece is well worth a read.

Click here to visit Money Saving Expert's article on free solar panels now.

photo credit: alan cleaver