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Stan_Dad

tunnel wrote: »

... As far as I was aware the t's & c's that was given at the point of contract were legally binding and cannot be added to at a later date(consumer law) so are these revisions legally binding? ...

tunnel

Yes they are and you can reject the new terms: however, the likely response from your FiT provider will be to end the contract, which the existing t&c's will allow for.

tunnel

Stan_Dad wrote: »

Yes they are and you can reject the new terms: however, the likely response from your FiT provider will be to end the contract, which the existing t&c's will allow for.

That's just it, there isn't anything, there is one clause that says they must inform me of any change which is of detriment to me in writing within 28 days.

If you've read up on here you'll understand I have a beef with my FITs provider, who have broken their own t&c's countless times and have NEVER informed me, yet I have done everything by the book. Its the reason why they are now paying a heavy price for their mistakes.

mac2008

tunnel wrote: »

Just had a letter from my FITs provider stating they're changing their t's & c's to include a clause that I must now keep a rolling record of the meter readings provided and the payments I receive for at least one year.

As far as I was aware the t's & c's that was given at the point of contract were legally binding and cannot be added to at a later date(consumer law) so are these revisions legally binding? They don't particularly bother me as I keep full records anyway but some may be a little daunted by the prospect, anyone else had something similar?

tunnel

Surely everyone could comply with this anyway. They don't specify how records should be kept. So if they ever ask for your records (which they wont), ask your bank for 12 months of statements and back-calculate the reading you submitted from the payment received.

Or, as they don't specify how to keep such records, just tell them you've chosen to lodge the records safely with a 3rd party (i.e. themselves) and they are welcome to write to themselves to obtain the information from themselves, free of charge

Martyn1981

mac2008 wrote: »

Or, as they don't specify how to keep such records, just tell them you've chosen to lodge the records safely with a 3rd party (i.e. themselves) and they are welcome to write to themselves to obtain the information from themselves, free of charge

Funny, but might defeat the object. My understanding is that this requirement is coming in to 'protect' us, in the case of a FIT provider going bust (maybe they need to put their prices up ?) It ensures that we have the data ourselves if we need to give it to a new supplier, rather than relying on the other Xcompany. As well as my e-mail (above) from EDF, have also now found references to similar e-mails from Scottish Power and NPower. So assume we'll all get this eventually (well, all PV'ers/FiT'ers).

Mart.

mac2008

Martyn1981 wrote: »

Funny, but might defeat the object. My understanding is that this requirement is coming in to 'protect' us, in the case of a FIT provider going bust (maybe they need to put their prices up ?) It ensures that we have the data ourselves if we need to give it to a new supplier, rather than relying on the other Xcompany. As well as my e-mail (above) from EDF, have also now found references to similar e-mails from Scottish Power and NPower. So assume we'll all get this eventually (well, all PV'ers/FiT'ers).

Mart.

Yes of course, I wasn't being entirely serious. I don't really think it is a big deal either - it's only 8 numbers - 4 of each quarterly readings and the corresponding payment.

BTW, interesting article on the BBC website today:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24659790

Interesting stats, such as:

"According to Lightsource, if the UK can ultimately produce 22GW of electricity from solar, enough to power four million homes, it can be done by utilising only 0.29% of Britain's agricultural land."

spgsc531

doughnutmachine wrote: »

Is there a daily MSE sphincter award I've not heard of? You would surely win it if there was.

cardew would get my vote

Martyn1981

1. Here's an article on PV windows. Aimed (from what I'm reading) at the commercial sector, interesting possibilities, but it does read a bit like an advert, and they apparently have 42 patents, but they don't like talking about it! The second paragraph I've pasted is particularly hard to comprehend when sober :-

New Energy To Unveil High Performance, 'next Generation' Solarwindow

http://www.solardaily.com/reports/New_Energy_To_Unveil_High_Performance_next_Generation_Solarwindow_999.html

New Energy Technologies, developer of SolarWindowT, the world's first-of-its-kind see-through technology capable of generating electricity on glass and flexible plastics, has announced plans to unveil the Company's next generation, high performance SolarWindowT working prototype within the upcoming calendar quarter.

"Our next-generation SolarWindowT has been engineered to deliver an architecturally neutral, aesthetically-pleasing, solution-processable coating technique for depositing see-through electricity-generating coatings on to glass surfaces as a source of electricity to today's towers, offices, and commercial buildings," stated Mr. John A. Conklin, President and CEO of New Energy Technologies, Inc.


2. Interesting enough article on the large roll-out of PV in Saudi Arabia (and Africa/Middle East), but I thought the reference to future PV prices was interesting (have seen similar references before):

Ambitious Saudi Arabia Solar Plans Hinge on Capitalizing on Major PV Module Price Reductions

http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Ambitious_Saudi_Arabia_Solar_Plans_Hinge_on_Capitalizing_on_Major_PV_Module_Price_Reductions_999.html

Saudi Arabia's bold initiatives come at a time when PV module costs are dropping, making large-scale solar systems more affordable. The average selling price (ASP) for solar modules is expected to dive to $0.38 per watt in 2023, down nearly 50 percent from $0.73 in 2012.

Mart.

mac2008

Martyn1981 wrote: »

"Our next-generation SolarWindowT has been engineered to deliver an architecturally neutral, aesthetically-pleasing, solution-processable coating technique for depositing see-through electricity-generating coatings on to glass surfaces as a source of electricity to today's towers, offices, and commercial buildings," stated Mr. John A. Conklin, President and CEO of New Energy Technologies, Inc.

Presumably, he then keeled over with shortness of breath.

But I agree it's terribly interesting technology. Clearly aimed at commercial buildings at present, but there must be a fair few south facing conservatories which might benefit from stuff like this.

Martyn1981

mac2008 wrote: »

But I agree it's terribly interesting technology. Clearly aimed at commercial buildings at present, but there must be a fair few south facing conservatories which might benefit from stuff like this.

"Don't make me curious, you won't like me when I'm curious!"

Hiya Mac, that got me pondering. I wonder what exactly is the difference between a greenhouse and a conservatory, as there are PV systems designed for greenhouses.

These start off simply by alternating glass and PV:

http://www.tritec-energy.com/en/reference-cases/1290-greenhouse-cruas/

But others use PV thin film that still allows plant growing light in, and might make for a nice conservatory roof, such as Polysolar:

little -

http://www.cambridgehok.co.uk/index.php?/about/newsmore/worlds_first_energy_generating_greenhouse/

and large -

http://solarpvgreenhouse.com/qa.php

Maybe I'm (we are?) just dreaming, but if you were building a conservatory anyway, might be worth a ponder.

Mart.

The_Green_Hornet

Playing loud pop and rock music improves the performance of solar cells, according to new research from scientists at Queen Mary University of London and Imperial College London.

The high frequencies and pitch found in pop and rock music cause vibrations that enhanced energy generation in solar cells containing a cluster of 'nanorods', leading to a 40 per cent increase in efficiency of the solar cells.

http://www.clickgreen.org.uk/news/national-news/124014-playing-loud-pop-music-boosts-output-of-solar-panels-by-40.html