Solar Feed In Tariff Income Guarantee ?

Sarah36_2

I have just come across a company that actually guarantees the income that they quote. If you do not receive the income which in our case was £1800 per year they pay the difference !
This seems a good deal but I wondered if anyone has experience of this guarantee ????
I found the information on Facebook but would rather not mention the company name.
Thanks folks !

grahamc2003

I expect the company won't be around too long. The fits for new installations are being reduced next year, and probably the reduction will be larger than current plans. As the fits come down, the number of solar installation companies will decrease. I expect many are formed hoping to make a packet in a couple of years, then close, leaving any guarantees worthless.

If you want solar, ensure the company will be around to honour any guarantees. This means, preversly, not buying from a solar company, but from the solar offshoot of an established company in a different business area, imv. People may not like Tescos, but at least their solar guarantee will be worth something.

Also, the fits are guranateed by the government. That is a pretty worthless gurantee too, although the perception generally is that it is a cast-iron guarantee.

Sarah36_2

The guarantee is provided by a third party and is for the 25 year period of the tariff.

UselessMoney

Just looked at latest solar panels yesterday and checked actual generated output on a sunny day, by my calculations and brochures on sanyo website you would be lucky to break even in less than 25years! (providing panels and inverters etc last that long without failing) Sounds like company desperate for cash and wont be around very much longer, and there gaurantee is probably worthless.

Sarah36_2

Yes my repayment period is about five years and with the yearly income underwritten by the guarantee I am happy

Brummie71

With current FIT levels, most installations - priced sensibly - should be repaid within 7-12 years. If yours won't repay within 25, get more quotes, because you are being ripped off.

Also, if the company is 'guaranteeing' the income, then I would guess that they are using artificially low figures to try to generate business and that would worry me about their future. Check the figures on one of the many reputable online calculators.

melbury

Sarah36 wrote: »

I have just come across a company that actually guarantees the income that they quote. If you do not receive the income which in our case was £1800 per year they pay the difference !
This seems a good deal but I wondered if anyone has experience of this guarantee ????
I found the information on Facebook but would rather not mention the company name.
Thanks folks !

Sounds like a load of carp;) How could any company possibly do this, I'd give it a very wide berth if I were you. Or do you work for the company in question?

Cardew

Can't people recognise spam these days!

judas_priest

melbury wrote: »

Sounds like a load of carp;) How could any company possibly do this, I'd give it a very wide berth if I were you. Or do you work for the company in question?

yep i can confirm that sarah is right ,we have had the same company fit our system a while ago, i took the claim with a pinch of salt but still had them fit it

I dont work for the company and i am not a spammer,
the company is pv solar uk ,and after i read some of the reports on another thread on here about them , i wish i had tesco fit them.
but hopefully everything will be ok , i am pleased with it so far

DocProc

Oh dear!

This wasn't going to happen until April 2012 and then not quite so severely!

From http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/10/31/uk-britain-solar-cuts-idUKTRE79U26M20111031

[SIZE=-1]Government plans to halve solar subsidies from mid: December[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]LONDON | Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:42am GMT [/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]LONDON (Reuters) - The government plans to halve state subsidies for solar panel schemes of up to 4 kilowatts (KW) from December 12, 2011 and will from April next year impose minimum energy efficiency standards on buildings applying for solar feed-in tariffs (FITs), the energy ministry said on Monday.
[/SIZE][SIZE=-1][/SIZE][SIZE=-1]"The plummeting costs of solar mean we've got no option but to act so that we stay within budget and not threaten the whole viability of the FITs scheme," said Energy Minister Greg Barker.[/SIZE]

I've just had a quote for a 4kWp for our home. It was received on Saturday morning and the price is £13,070 for the installation.

The pay back time is worked out as being 8 years years using 43.3p and the ROI figure is worked out at 19.24% so this looked a bit like a 'no-brainer' of an investment as we would have been paying for it ourselves.

Using a lower figure of half this , ie. 21.65p, has got to at least double this time and roughly halve the ROI.

This is going to affect the market place dramatically and immediately, I feel. I cannot guarantee to:

1. Get it installed
2. Commissioned
3. Certified into the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS)

all before December 12th.

I think the best thing I can now do is to NOT GO AHEAD and just wait a while. Prices for installations have now just got to come down!

DocProc

And from: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/10/31/uk-britain-solar-cuts-idUKTRE79U26M20111031

[SIZE=-1]UK plans to halve solar subsidies[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]By Karolin Schaps[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]LONDON | Mon Oct 31, 2011 11:23am GMT[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]LONDON (Reuters) - Britain plans to halve state subsidies for solar panel schemes of up to 50 kilowatts (kW) and to impose minimum energy efficiency standards on buildings applying for solar feed-in tariffs (FITs), the energy ministry said on Monday.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]"The plummeting costs of solar mean we've got no option but to act so that we stay within budget and not threaten the whole viability of the FITs scheme," said Energy Minister Greg Barker in a written statement to Parliament on Monday.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Properties which retrofit solar panels with an installed capacity of up to 4 kW will see rates slashed from 43.3 pence per kilowatt-hour (kWh) to 21.0 pence, while tariffs for installations between 4-10 kW and 10-50 kW will see a 53-55 pct reduction.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Projects starting on or after December 12, will receive current tariffs until April 1, 2012 but new tariffs will apply from then, the government said.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Britain introduced state subsidies for large renewable energy projects in April last year to encourage growth of new green technologies until they reach commercial scale.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]The government had already fast tracked a state subsidy review for solar plants earlier this year, cutting rates for the largest schemes by 40-70 percent from August 1, which had caused an outcry among solar plant developers.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Barker said average costs of a domestic solar panel installation had fallen at least 30 percent since the start of the scheme in April 2010 to 9,000 pounds and if the government left current tariffs unchanged, consumers would pay 980 million pounds per year for solar FITs.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]"My priority is to put the solar industry on a firm footing so that it can remain a successful and prosperous part of the green economy, and so that it doesn't fall victim to boom and bust," he said.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Proposals also include imposing a minimum energy efficiency standard on properties seeking solar subsidies from April 2012.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Buildings could be required to reach a minimum Energy Performance Certificate level of C or participate in the government's Green Deal programme to install efficiency measures such as loft insulation.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]The proposals are subject to a consultation period.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1](Reporting by Karolin Schaps)[/SIZE]