Free solar power system. Is it a scam?

Localweb

I applied, was accepted, went all through the whole thing, got near to them being fitted- until I saw the full contract (that they dont show you till your at the final stage) and the charge that is lodged at the land registry....I'm actually surprised anyone's mortgage lenders agrees to the contract at all?

My daughter is a barrister and she freaked out at the contract - so I'm not doing it...

To me, does not make sense to save a few hundred a year in leccy bills if it could mean it is hard to sell and maybe cost you thousands indirectly if you needed to sell etc.

Before agreeing to surveys etc. save yourself some time by demanding to see the 'final' contract and get that checked out legally before you take the plunge.

I should add the company I was dealing with was called MyEnergyStation.

sassy_one

I would not take the free solar panel offer up

Jon_Tiffany

Localweb wrote: »

I applied, was accepted, went all through the whole thing, got near to them being fitted- until I saw the full contract (that they dont show you till your at the final stage) and the charge that is lodged at the land registry....I'm actually surprised anyone's mortgage lenders agrees to the contract at all?

My daughter is a barrister and she freaked out at the contract - so I'm not doing it...

To me, does not make sense to save a few hundred a year in leccy bills if it could mean it is hard to sell and maybe cost you thousands indirectly if you needed to sell etc.

Before agreeing to surveys etc. save yourself some time by demanding to see the 'final' contract and get that checked out legally before you take the plunge.

I'm surprised that they are lodging a charge for this, especially as there is no need, all they need to do is register a lease. Could you post the relevant part of the contract that explains this? It would be useful for those considering the free systems to be able to view the wording of the contract.

Cardew

Localweb wrote: »

My daughter is a barrister and she freaked out at the contract - so I'm not doing it...

To me, does not make sense to save a few hundred a year in leccy bills if it could mean it is hard to sell and maybe cost you thousands indirectly if you needed to sell etc.

If the savings were indeed a 'few hundred' a year then it would a different story.(I assume you mean ££££s and not kWh;))

However all the evidence I have seen from people who have measured the consumption used in the house, is that they use between 500kWh and 1,000kWh a year of the PV panel output.

As posted earlier in this thread, someone(Mcfi5) with an export meter uses about 500kWh pa and he has a wife and 2 small children at home all day.

That would save me less than £50 a year.

beedydad

Localweb wrote: »

I applied, was accepted, went all through the whole thing, got near to them being fitted- until I saw the full contract (that they dont show you till your at the final stage) and the charge that is lodged at the land registry....I'm actually surprised anyone's mortgage lenders agrees to the contract at all?

My daughter is a barrister and she freaked out at the contract - so I'm not doing it...

To me, does not make sense to save a few hundred a year in leccy bills if it could mean it is hard to sell and maybe cost you thousands indirectly if you needed to sell etc.

Before agreeing to surveys etc. save yourself some time by demanding to see the 'final' contract and get that checked out legally before you take the plunge.

Very interesting and as others point out the power used (as opposed to that generated) is probably no more than £100 - £150 at best - and not as you assume a "few" hundred.

The other point about contracts is important. I was speaking with REAL guy at the National Self Build & Renovation Centre - Green Build show - in Swindon, over the weekend - they have produced a fact sheet on "free" or "rent a roof" schemes - they do not seem to be impressed and eluded to the fact that you commit to a 25 year deal and get a paltry sum in return.

They were interested in my view that a real rent should be charged seperate from the reduction in your electricity (which could be swallowed up by the likely utility charge increases this winter!).

Maybe you could ask your family member whether a rent agreement should or could be put in place?

Regards

DonSwan

The pensioners' bungalow, which is still the only property on the "Homes for Sale" page of the ASG website, is advertised on Rightmove as having, "newly installed solar panels with projected energy savings of approximately £400 per annum". Depends what you mean by "projected", I suppose. But I can't help but feel this must transgress the Property Misdescriptions Act 1991.

For what it's worth, the ASG panels don't seem to have improved its kerb appeal. It was put on the market on 17th May for £204,500, and reduced on the 15th September to £199,500. And it still hasn't sold! Come on you Barnsley greenies - stump up to save the planet ...

Localweb

Sorry, I'm a bit of a tidy bug, already binned the contract
Yes, my daughter informs me that they could have a separate contract and rent your roof from you drawn up. I decided the small saving sums involved were not worth a legal charge/claim being laid on my property. I am also peeved that initially I was shown a very 'simple' contract yet at the last minute this doozy of a contract was slipped to me so matter of fact. My best advice people is to get advice on these contracts before you sign away a lot of your property rights and agree to a hell of a lot of unfair terms

DonSwan

The electricity generated can't actually feed back into the national grid, can it? It wouldn't be able to get past the first 240v step-down transformer. I suppose it might be used by someone else in the street, if they are at home at the time it is being generated. But otherwise the panel owner will be receiving the Feed-in Tariff for electricity that doesn't actually get used.

I live in a rural area, in one of only three houses downstream from the transformer. If I bought my own PV panels, would I qualify for the FIT, even though nobody might be using the electricity? Or do you have to be in an area with more houses in order to qualify? Does anyone on here know?

Doc_N

DonSwan wrote: »

The electricity generated can't actually feed back into the national grid, can it? It wouldn't be able to get past the first 240v step-down transformer. I suppose it might be used by someone else in the street, if they are at home at the time it is being generated. But otherwise the panel owner will be receiving the Feed-in Tariff for electricity that doesn't actually get used.

I live in a rural area, in one of only three houses downstream from the transformer. If I bought my own PV panels, would I qualify for the FIT, even though nobody might be using the electricity? Or do you have to be in an area with more houses in order to qualify? Does anyone on here know?

I can't comment on the technical side of your question, but you'll qualify for the FIT payments wherever you live, provided that you're connected to mains electricity.

DonSwan

In that case it is a scam, isn't it? The panel owner gets paid the FIT regardless of whether the electricity generated gets used. That's public money going into someone's pocket for nothing.