Free solar panel feedback discussion: HomeSun

dthdeeping

After not hearing anything from Homesun 2 weeks after a survey, I rang them and was amazed to be told my roof was too small. The surveyor had mentioned in passing that my roof was big enough for a maximum system but the lady on the phone could only respond by saying how wrong the surveyor was to express an opinion. Shocked, I rang off. I rang back to ask how my 35m2 or so of clear south facing roof could possibly be too small for their minimum 20m2 system and would they mind checking as there was obviously some error. I was told very firmly that they were sorry but that was their decision and that was an end to the matter.
So what is going on here? I would understand if they gave a reason involving the recent proposed changes to FIT payments and the need to limit jobs or something like that, but to insult my intelligence with such a blatantly untrue reason as this makes me suspicious of what precisely is going on at Homesun especially given the suspicions expressed in this forum recently.

SYNERGY

HomeSun_company_representative wrote: »

Hi SYNERGY,

Daniel Green our CEO stated how the proposed cuts could dramatically affect the industry if they were to go ahead at such a low rate. They would directly affect HomeSun employees, however as yet no jobs have been lost. On the other hand, I again state that HomeSun do not employee any Fitters or Surveyors directly. They are subcontracted. They are there to do a job on behalf of HomeSun.

Tanya

Morning.

You said:

" The fitters we use are sub-contracted to Carillion Energy Services, they have 4500 employees under a 90 day consultation. Just to reitterate this does not affect HomeSun at all as we use various other sub-contractors around the UK."

Yet Mr Green states:

"Carillion is also the sole provider for Homesun,"

Just wondering which statement is correct.

Yours or Mr Greens !

beelzebomb

I think from what I've been observing here (& I know there are always two sides to every story) is enough for me to not use Homesun, even if they were to actually bother contacting me as requested.

I see a lot of promises apparently being broken for spurious roof-size reasons which tends to make one think that we all have shrinking & expanding roofs, as the actual size seems to be rather a yes/no erratic issue for them.

Anyone googling Homesun will find easily this forum as the SEO rating on this site is pretty high, which makes me wonder why the company customer service dept does not want to make sure that future comments are more positive than negative.

DoctorBanzai

Ultimately, I don't think that Homesun could care less about anything that is said here. The employees who monitor this forum or deal directly with us, as customers, have no power or ability to sort out any kind of situation. All that happens is emails (sometimes) get sent to the next person in the managerial chain and that person may (or not) deal with it. Eventually you hit the managerial ceiling where the next level don't care about individual cases and only see the numbers and not the people. I also suspect that most Homesun customer services employees are as mis-informed and clueless as the rest of us.

Homesun are just waiting for it to all blow over and be forgotten about.

The media, politicians and regulatory bodies including the ASA really don't seem to give a stuff so, honestly, a few people complaining on a forum really isn't going to faze them. As to how their employees feel as to the way they have to treat customers; we will never know.

I am saddened that companies that can be so morally bankrupt still continue to trade and expect us to sympathise with them when they run into a hitch that reduces their profits. Who get's screwed? Employees and customers. That's who.

HomeSun_company_representative

dthdeeping wrote: »

After not hearing anything from Homesun 2 weeks after a survey, I rang them and was amazed to be told my roof was too small. The surveyor had mentioned in passing that my roof was big enough for a maximum system but the lady on the phone could only respond by saying how wrong the surveyor was to express an opinion. Shocked, I rang off. I rang back to ask how my 35m2 or so of clear south facing roof could possibly be too small for their minimum 20m2 system and would they mind checking as there was obviously some error. I was told very firmly that they were sorry but that was their decision and that was an end to the matter.
So what is going on here? I would understand if they gave a reason involving the recent proposed changes to FIT payments and the need to limit jobs or something like that, but to insult my intelligence with such a blatantly untrue reason as this makes me suspicious of what precisely is going on at Homesun especially given the suspicions expressed in this forum recently.

Hi dthdeeping,

We sincerely apologise you feel you have not been given sufficient information to backup the reason for not being able to fit your roof. If you send your details to [EMAIL="customerservices@homesun.com"]customerservices@homesun.com[/EMAIL] we would be happy to clarify why we think it is not big enough.

Tanya

HomeSun_company_representative

SYNERGY wrote: »

Morning.

You said:

" The fitters we use are sub-contracted to Carillion Energy Services, they have 4500 employees under a 90 day consultation. Just to reitterate this does not affect HomeSun at all as we use various other sub-contractors around the UK."

Yet Mr Green states:

"Carillion is also the sole provider for Homesun,"

Just wondering which statement is correct.

Yours or Mr Greens !

Hi Synergy,

Yes, at the time this statement was true and Carillion was the sole provider. However due to the rush to get fitted before December 12th we made the decision to take on more contractors.
I hope this clears up the confusion.

Tanya

HomeSun_company_representative

beelzebomb wrote: »

I think from what I've been observing here (& I know there are always two sides to every story) is enough for me to not use Homesun, even if they were to actually bother contacting me as requested.

I see a lot of promises apparently being broken for spurious roof-size reasons which tends to make one think that we all have shrinking & expanding roofs, as the actual size seems to be rather a yes/no erratic issue for them.

Anyone googling Homesun will find easily this forum as the SEO rating on this site is pretty high, which makes me wonder why the company customer service dept does not want to make sure that future comments are more positive than negative.

Hi Beelzebomb,

We are sorry you have not had a good experience with HomeSun and that your query was not responded to. We are honest to our customers about whether we can fit their roofs and it is in both our best interests if we turn them away if we think their roof is not suitable. Regarding roof size, the decision is made on a number of factors and even if the roof is large enough we have to factor in many other variables. We welcome our customers to challenge the original decision however we do not make these decisions without good reason and would be happy to fully explain if asked to do so.

Tanya

HomeSun_company_representative

DoctorBanzai wrote: »

Ultimately, I don't think that Homesun could care less about anything that is said here. The employees who monitor this forum or deal directly with us, as customers, have no power or ability to sort out any kind of situation. All that happens is emails (sometimes) get sent to the next person in the managerial chain and that person may (or not) deal with it. Eventually you hit the managerial ceiling where the next level don't care about individual cases and only see the numbers and not the people. I also suspect that most Homesun customer services employees are as mis-informed and clueless as the rest of us.

Homesun are just waiting for it to all blow over and be forgotten about.

The media, politicians and regulatory bodies including the ASA really don't seem to give a stuff so, honestly, a few people complaining on a forum really isn't going to faze them. As to how their employees feel as to the way they have to treat customers; we will never know.

I am saddened that companies that can be so morally bankrupt still continue to trade and expect us to sympathise with them when they run into a hitch that reduces their profits. Who get's screwed? Employees and customers. That's who.

Hi DoctorBanzai,

As an employee of HomeSun and someone who tries to help any customers on the MSE forum, I can tell you that the customer services team have done their best under the circumstances they were put under in the last few weeks. We did try to help all customers who made inquiries and worked all hours to get the job done, however despite our best efforts and as a direct result of the government’s decision to slash the FIT’s and only giving us 6 weeks’ notice, there may have been a lot of unhappy customers who were delayed their installation and were not installed which we can only apologise for.

Tanya

DoctorBanzai

HomeSun_company_representative wrote: »

Hi DoctorBanzai,

As an employee of HomeSun and someone who tries to help any customers on the MSE forum, I can tell you that the customer services team have done their best under the circumstances they were put under in the last few weeks. We did try to help all customers who made inquiries and worked all hours to get the job done, however despite our best efforts and as a direct result of the government’s decision to slash the FIT’s and only giving us 6 weeks’ notice, there may have been a lot of unhappy customers who were delayed their installation and were not installed which we can only apologise for.

Tanya

Hi,
Yes, I agree that the people at your customer services team have, on the whole, been as helpful as they can. I understand that, but the position they and yourself have been put in is the fault of the company you work for, not the customers you are trying to deal with.

I would like to reiterate why I am so unhappy with Homesun.

1. I applied to Homesun months ago. My survey was carried out quickly but then the survey results got lost for the best part of two and a half months. Consequently my acceptance and installation was delayed. This happened long before the FiT reduction on the 12th Dec was announced. Not my fault nor is it the fault of the Government.

2. Two failed install attempts. First no panels and then nobody at all. It is unforgivable that on the second attempt nobody even tried to contact us to let us know what was going on. We had to wait two days before we could speak to anyone, and even then Homesun seemed to assume that everything was fine. As per section 15 of the lease, I would have been penalised if they had turned up and I wasn't here to receive them. So Homesun had two opportunities to install my system before the FiT reduction. Not my fault nor the fault of the Government.

3. Contacting Homesun is hit or miss at the best of times. I've spent hours in your holding system. Why is it that at least 50% of the time it holds you for 10-20 minutes and then just cuts you off? And why an 0844 number? By coincidence I received my phone bill on Saturday and have 28 pounds worth of calls to Homesun/Carillion. And please don't say I should have used email. email responses are patchy and take too long. Homesun's communication is not very good. Not my fault nor the fault of the Government.

I believe that morally Homesun should have honoured agreements that had already been made. I don't want to sound selfish, but considering that my plug was pulled purely because of Homesun's mistakes they should have felt obliged to complete the work. To keep banging on about the FiT cuts being responsible for the situation is ridiculous. If it had been my company I would have stopped offering the product as soon as the cuts were announced and concentrated on honouring the contracts that had already been made.

I am, I'm afraid, very naive. I know how I used to run my business and my priority was to always be honest in my dealings, treat my customers with respect and sometimes, just sometimes, take a small hit in profits for the sake of goodwill, and although I certainly wasn't as big as Homesun, I was successful with happy customers and good profits.

Finally, Tanya, please don't feel obliged to respond to this post. I've already heard the explanations and apologies. I mean no disrespect to yourself or anyone else on the customer services team, as I am fully aware that it is not you who make these decisions, you are all in an impossible position. There is nothing you can do except, perhaps, get my documents back to me ASAP.

Just my ha'pennys worth. I'll get me coat.

Tedward64

Oh Dear, Oh Dear. I really did not intend to post again here ... but ... I've just received a 'phone call from the former Homesun representative to ask if my installation had been carried out. It gets better. After the initial shock, I explained it had not, and what I thought of Homesun. Undeterred, this guy then told me, clearly and calmly, that Homesun had "gone under" and he was working for someone else who would be pleased to quote for a free system.

Two things cross my mind. The total lack of information Homesun shares with its employees and the unprofessional behaviour of those who work for them. Sorry Tanya, your lot really are the limit! Just send me back my contract please as you have promised to do and I can rest easy.