Feed in Tariffs and updating heating system- Advice please

BadgerIOW

Hello,

My elderly parents had solar panels installed a few years ago as my father was swayed by all the hype about energy prices spiralling out of control and that solar was the answer to keeping his electric bill affordable. As a pre 2009 installation from April 2010 they should be getting the 9p per KWH for any electricity exported to the grid, the most recent bill (Aug 2010) doesn’t show any of this and my father seemed to think it had not been sorted out yet. He is also under the impression that he will pay the same rate for the electricity he uses over and above what is generated; I didn’t think this sounded right as looking at the bill and the tariffs on Southern Electric website they are currently on a standard tariff paying 11.52p for normal rate.

Basically I would like to know if

• With a FIT do you pay for the extra electric you use at the same rate as you ‘sell’ it for?
• Can you shop around providers like any other consumer and if so is it any harder to swap?

Also they currently use 20 yr old night storage heaters and are looking to replace them, my father has had some literature from the economy-radiator company fronted by a Mike Woods whom from searching on MSE and other sites had some involvement with Kalirel and less than favourable feedback. They’ve been quoted £1700-2000 to replace the system which seems very expensive for what appears to me to be another load of hype. The big selling point is the supposed cost savings and the control offered but my limited understanding is that no one source of electric heating is anymore effective than another. Would modern electric rads with thermostatic control be better than the old night storage? If so I’m sure I could find a cheaper alternative to the deal offered. My parents are at home all day so do suffer from a loss of heat from the NSH in the afternoons and would like to be able to have the heat there when they want it.

I phoned Southern electric micro-renewable energy helpline today for the answer to these questions, polite as she was the lady I spoke to advised me she was ‘only filling in’ so couldn’t answer my questions. They said someone would call me in 5 days, I’ve heard that one before………………….

Many thanks