Free solar power system. Is it a scam?

Cardew

beedydad wrote: »

Cardews and others

The "free" deal is giving away too much to these companies.

I have suggested before that for a householder to "rent" their roof space should get real rent in addition to the free solar generated electricity you, not just generate, but actually use.

You mention it is around half the total - so do not forget that the install companies get their FIT on the full amount - you get your saving on 50% ie the bit you use.

My solution is to negotiate hard to get an annual rent in addition - my start off point would be an extra £100 per anum over the term

Gives the householder a better return and still gives the install companis a very decent profit over 25 years - may take them longer but thats not our problem!!

Regards

The companies are inundated with requests for panels to be fitted under the present conditions. So why would they agree to pay rent?

Lube

I agree I also think panels will come down in price and on thee free deals it will be the companies who gain the most

Cardew wrote: »

The companies are inundated with requests for panels to be fitted under the present conditions. So why would they agree to pay rent?

beedydad

Cardew wrote: »

The companies are inundated with requests for panels to be fitted under the present conditions. So why would they agree to pay rent?

Becuase they probably have not analyised as much as has been done on this forum, for example.

People are leamings and think it sounds good, its free so go for it.

A year or 2 down the line they may well regret it.

Why do you think this MSE website has been set up and is so succesful and me and you and loads of others visit here? Becuase at some stage we have been scammed or know others who have have or we don't feel quite right about offers - so why does it make these "free" solar any different?

We should be putting out warnings - there is a good Guardian article and some other comments recently that warns people against taking out the "free" versions - but how many peeps read the Guardian!

There remains suckers on every street corner!

Regards

Cardew

beedydad wrote: »

Becuase they probably have not analyised as much as has been done on this forum, for example.

People are leamings and think it sounds good, its free so go for it.

A year or 2 down the line they may well regret it.

Why do you think this MSE website has been set up and is so succesful and me and you and loads of others visit here? Becuase at some stage we have been scammed or know others who have have or we don't feel quite right about offers - so why does it make these "free" solar any different?

We should be putting out warnings - there is a good Guardian article and some other comments recently that warns people against taking out the "free" versions - but how many peeps read the Guardian!

There remains suckers on every street corner!

Regards

I don't understand your reasoning here!

I stated:

The companies are inundated with requests for panels to be fitted under the present conditions. So why would they agree to pay rent?

You have put up(valid) arguments why it is not a great deal for house owners(which I have been saying for months).

However if the companies are inundated with requests to have systems fitted under the current conditions, can you see companies agreeing to pay rent?

If they run out of applicants, then they might offer further inducements, but as anything 'free' is irresistible to the great British public. that is hardly likely.

beedydad

Cardew wrote: »

I don't understand your reasoning here!

I stated:



You have put up(valid) arguments why it is not a great deal for house owners(which I have been saying for months).

However if the companies are inundated with requests to have systems fitted under the current conditions, can you see companies agreeing to pay rent?

If they run out of applicants, then they might offer further inducements, but as anything 'free' is irresistible to the great British public. that is hardly likely.

You are right, whilst the sun shines they make hay (no pun intended!) whilst any company can make a greater profit then they will continue the sales line that they are following. This is new(ish) form of tactics so the general puplic are not aware about it and whether there are alternatives.

If a company proposed to offer a fixed rent as well as the free installation I would easily recommend it. As it stands then if peeps want PV they should seriously look at outright purchase.

I am sure that this will evolve and others may come along with a different slant - however, what I would not want to see is the fledgling solar industry be ruined by one or 2 sharp practices and then put many off for the future.

Regards

energyman

Ok lets look at someone investing themselves in solar PV. First they have to find the £20k for the system (has to be installed by MCS installer otherwise no feed in tariff) - unless they have it lying around then this will cost interest (even if banks will lend). This will give them 3500kWh per year which with feed in tariffs and assuming 40% used by the house, will provide income and savings worth £1600-£1700 per year. This is a 12 year payback but over 20 years gives a return on investment of about 6%. Looks good compared to current bank rates but who is seriously going to get a loan to do this?

Doc_N

energyman wrote: »

Ok lets look at someone investing themselves in solar PV. First they have to find the £20k for the system (has to be installed by MCS installer otherwise no feed in tariff) - unless they have it lying around then this will cost interest (even if banks will lend). This will give them 3500kWh per year which with feed in tariffs and assuming 40% used by the house, will provide income and savings worth £1600-£1700 per year. This is a 12 year payback but over 20 years gives a return on investment of about 6%. Looks good compared to current bank rates but who is seriously going to get a loan to do this?

For goodness sake, don't pay £20,000 for a system. There are plenty around for far less than that. Tesco will do you one for £15,000, for example.

Nervous_Norvus

Don't rely on feed-in tariffs being maintained over 25 years, or indeed on anything contractual being honoured for that length of time. I thought my pension was RPI linked.... I don't want to side-track the discussion, but that is an example of a clear undertaking by government being arbitrarily ripped up. If you think the free electricity is worth having then fine, but nobody, government or private sector can be counted on to honour a contract for that long.

The only other problem I can see is possible roof damage. I would want to be quite sure that any damage resulting from panels coming adrift in a storm would be made good - check you are not invalidating your buildings insurance when fitting solar panels.

I don't want to be a party pooper - it may still be worth your while but do consider these points.

lemfizz

Hi all

We recently applied for the ASG solar panels and were accepted. However, after careful consideration we have decided against going ahead for the following reasons:

The estimated saving of about £100-£150 per annum on our electricity bill doesn't seem high enough to justify entering into a binding 25 year contract.

The solar panels would be ours to keep after 25 years, but the technology would have probably moved on considerably in that time, leaving us with obsolete solar panels on our roof.

We were not convinced that a house with solar panels on which did not belong to the owner would be as an attractive proposition to prospective buyers as ASG claim.

ASG informed us that a date had been arranged for the scaffolders to come, and a date for a new meter to be fitted before anyone had been out to discuss the details or go through the paperwork with us, so we began to feel that we were being put under pressure to let the installation go ahead.

We cancelled the installation by phone and email and were phoned up a few days later to agree a date for someone to come out so we could sign the agreement!

We were told that if cancelled we would be the only ones to cancel an installation as everyone else had been happy with the agreement, so even then we felt we were being pressured!

Cardew

lemfizz wrote: »

Hi all

We recently applied for the ASG solar panels and were accepted. However, after careful consideration we have decided against going ahead for the following reasons:

The estimated saving of about £100-£150 per annum on our electricity bill doesn't seem high enough to justify entering into a binding 25 year contract.

The solar panels would be ours to keep after 25 years, but the technology would have probably moved on considerably in that time, leaving us with obsolete solar panels on our roof.

We were not convinced that a house with solar panels on which did not belong to the owner would be as an attractive proposition to prospective buyers as ASG claim.

ASG informed us that a date had been arranged for the scaffolders to come, and a date for a new meter to be fitted before anyone had been out to discuss the details or go through the paperwork with us, so we began to feel that we were being put under pressure to let the installation go ahead.

We cancelled the installation by phone and email and were phoned up a few days later to agree a date for someone to come out so we could sign the agreement!

We were told that if cancelled we would be the only ones to cancel an installation as everyone else had been happy with the agreement, so even then we felt we were being pressured!

Whilst I personally agree with your reservation that the rewards of the scheme are meagre, I find it difficult to understand why you feel you feel you are under pressure.

Surely you should have discussed details of the scheme, and understood the implications before making an application?