I've been a massive fool...My planet UK Solar.

Gstyle007

The meeting is tomorrow, Someone called Steve Watts is coming round in the morning, so I will let you know how it goes.


Just one more thing I have noticed while reading through the paperwork again, It states on the back of the calculation sheet that they give a 14 working day cooling off period and if installation is to begin before then, then I should have signed to accept that - I have not signed to say they can install before the cooling off period.


I will bring this up as well tomorrow !!


Fingers crossed !

captainhindsight_2

Gstyle007 wrote: »

Hi Everyone,

This is my first post, Been following the forum for a number of years but I am so angry with myself I had to tell people about it in the hope I can save someone from the same experience.

It all started last week when I received a cold call from My Planet UK Solar, I don't usually answer these calls as I have caller ID but on this occasion it came up as a mobile number so I thought it may be a friend or family. Usually once I know what the call is I say i'm not interested and put the phone down, but for some reason this time I listened. The girl asked if someone could ring me back with a view to having solar panels installed this is where I should have said no but again for some reason I said yes :mad:

Someone called me back and arranged for a sales person to come round in the next couple of days again I should have said not interested but again I agreed :doh:

A salesman came round a couple of days later and to be fair to him he was pleasant and not pushy at all, he went through everything and it seemed like quite a decent company until it came to the price and this is where the alarm bells should have started ringing.

He gave us a quote for a 1.5kw 6 panel system fully fitted with everything including a geo solo 2 monitor and 20 led light bulbs for £7659 this would be financed by a loan from creation finance over 10 years total cost £11538.40 The price he showed me was between 7659 - about 8500, he said the difference was the quicker we decided and said it didnt matter to him if we bought or not as he still got paid either way (more alarm bells).

I wasn't too worried about the finance because I can pay the whole amount off in a couple of years so wouldn't be paying anywhere near that final amount.

Having done no research and not having any other quotes to go off I agreed and a survey date was set a couple of days later and once that was done an installation date for yesterday was arranged. During this time I should have done the research and cancelled but for some reason I didn't, I have no idea why I didn't I think my brain wasn't functioning correctly !!!

Anyway everything was installed yesterday by a couple of polish guys using a ladder and a small amount of temporary scaffolding. To be fair to them they worked all day and left no mess and everything went smoothly.

As i said at the beginning I am angry with myself which is why i wanted to write this, and although very expensive the company has done everything it said it would, It is just annoying how company's can blatantly rip people off with services twice as expensive as anyone else and stupid people like me fall for it :doh:

I am now stuck with this system and it will probably take me 20 years for it to pay itself off.

I would suggest anyone getting a call from My Planet Uk should definitely say they are not interested as there are much cheaper suppliers supplying the same quality panels.

Anyway sorry for the long post and hopefully it may help someone save some money !!

Cheers. :sad:

I don't see what the company have done wrong, they are a business there to make money, provide jobs and pay staff etc.. They want to sell their product for us much as they can get away with, just like you would if you were selling an old sofa on ebay.

You can not blame them because you didn't do your research, haggle and get alternative quotes.

System

captainhindsight wrote: »

I don't see what the company have done wrong, they are a business there to make money, provide jobs and pay staff etc.. They want to sell their product for us much as they can get away with, just like you would if you were selling an old sofa on ebay.

You can not blame them because you didn't do your research, haggle and get alternative quotes.

A bit harsh given that some of the calculations may be incorrect. On that basis alone, the OP has the right to raise questions with the installer. If your view prevailed, then there would be no need whatsoever for any form of consumer protection.

FWiW, I would like to see the law ban the use of low energy bulbs in all PV Solar quotes. Just think how much we would all save if we didn't bother to use any electricity at all! This why sensible consumer law is needed. The savings from LED bulbs are the same whether there are PV Solar tiles on the roof on not. They are just being used to give inflated savings figures.

Cardew

captainhindsight wrote: »

I don't see what the company have done wrong, they are a business there to make money, provide jobs and pay staff etc.. They want to sell their product for us much as they can get away with, just like you would if you were selling an old sofa on ebay.

You can not blame them because you didn't do your research, haggle and get alternative quotes.

Where do you draw a line with that approach?


Is charging a pensioner £5,000 for replacing a couple of tiles on the roof in order because she hadn't done her research?

captainhindsight_2

Of course consumer protection is important, but it can only do so much. The end of the day the consumer has to take responsibility for what they choose to buy.

It is like saying I bought milk from Tesco it was 20p cheaper at the corner shop therefore Tesco have ripped me off its just daft.

System

captainhindsight wrote: »

It is like saying I bought milk from Tesco it was 20p cheaper at the corner shop therefore Tesco have ripped me off its just daft.

Not quite. The OP entered into an agreement having been told that he would make £x savings over 20 years when in truth the savings - using the supplier's assumptions - are closer to £2/3x. This inaccuracy - whether deliberate or otherwise - changes the nature of the deal that the OP thought that he had entered in to. The fact that most of us would pour of the calculations for accuracy doesn't change the fact that he has the right to seek some form of redress from the supplier directly or via the PV Solar oversight body.

You are correct to say that paying a price for a certain service is a 'take it or leave it' decision for the customer but using your analogy you might be justifiably annoyed if your carton of milk contained only 2/3rds of the stated contents.

Gstyle007

Hey everyone,

Right, Met with Mr Watts today and went over my issues, He refused to admit that any of the figures quoted were wrong, However he asked me what I wanted to make me happy, I said that I would be happy to pay £5000 with some extra panels fitted (I know this is still overpriced but I just wanted it sorted), He said he couldn't do it that cheap but said that he will refund me £2000 and "put as many panels as he could fit on my roof" and in return he has asked me to remove any comments I have made on various forums relating to the company !!

So overall It's going to cost £5659 and I think they will be able to fit another 6 possibly 7 panels, This is still more than it would cost from somewhere else but I am just happy to put this whole thing behind me.

He got the fitters to call round this evening to look at the roof and they are due to fit the extra panels next Tuesday. Mr Watts said the £2k should be in my bank tomorrow.

I will wait to see if everything he has promised comes true, but I must say if it does it has changed my opinion of the company!

I want to thank everyone on here for all your calculations and advice as I wouldn't have had a clue without you all, I will let you know when everything is finalised but for now I think we can put this down to a win for the little man !!!

Cheers.

SunReader

Agreed above the calculations on solar pv are complex and often misunderstood, particularly for a commission paid rep without the correct surveying equipment and a three day training course.

One angle you maybe could have explored more is whether you have a 14 day cooling off period for a finance deal - when you are approached by a cold call the law is different then when you approach them, also the finance deal has a cooling off period to prevent high pressure selling.

Perhaps others could clarify the cooling off rights on a cold call finance sale - I was in direct sales for a while so that was how it worked with us then, 14 days on finance.

As my name might suggest, I'm a great believer in Solar PV if you have the right roof. Have no doubt energy prices are only going in one direction.

Cardew

Gstyle007 wrote: »

I will wait to see if everything he has promised comes true, but I must say if it does it has changed my opinion of the company!

Very happy for you personally.

However you are articulate and have the drive to pursue this matter to a conclusion.

So I fail to see why it has changed your opinion of the company - or do you feel they will be re-visiting all their other clients and offering refunds and extra panels?

Your original post is below:

I've been a massive fool...My planet UK Solar.


Hi Everyone,

This is my first post, Been following the forum for a number of years but I am so angry with myself I had to tell people about it in the hope I can save someone from the same experience.

It all started last week when I received a cold call from My Planet UK Solar, I don't usually answer these calls as I have caller ID but on this occasion it came up as a mobile number so I thought it may be a friend or family. Usually once I know what the call is I say i'm not interested and put the phone down, but for some reason this time I listened. The girl asked if someone could ring me back with a view to having solar panels installed this is where I should have said no but again for some reason I said yes

Someone called me back and arranged for a sales person to come round in the next couple of days again I should have said not interested but again I agreed

A salesman came round a couple of days later and to be fair to him he was pleasant and not pushy at all, he went through everything and it seemed like quite a decent company until it came to the price and this is where the alarm bells should have started ringing.

He gave us a quote for a 1.5kw 6 panel system fully fitted with everything including a geo solo 2 monitor and 20 led light bulbs for £7659 this would be financed by a loan from creation finance over 10 years total cost £11538.40 The price he showed me was between 7659 - about 8500, he said the difference was the quicker we decided and said it didnt matter to him if we bought or not as he still got paid either way (more alarm bells).

I wasn't too worried about the finance because I can pay the whole amount off in a couple of years so wouldn't be paying anywhere near that final amount.

Having done no research and not having any other quotes to go off I agreed and a survey date was set a couple of days later and once that was done an installation date for yesterday was arranged. During this time I should have done the research and cancelled but for some reason I didn't, I have no idea why I didn't I think my brain wasn't functioning correctly !!!

Anyway everything was installed yesterday by a couple of polish guys using a ladder and a small amount of temporary scaffolding. To be fair to them they worked all day and left no mess and everything went smoothly.

As i said at the beginning I am angry with myself which is why i wanted to write this, and although very expensive the company has done everything it said it would, It is just annoying how company's can blatantly rip people off with services twice as expensive as anyone else and stupid people like me fall for it

I am now stuck with this system and it will probably take me 20 years for it to pay itself off.

I would suggest anyone getting a call from My Planet Uk should definitely say they are not interested as there are much cheaper suppliers supplying the same quality panels.

Anyway sorry for the long post and hopefully it may help someone save some money !!

Cheers.

Martyn1981

Gstyle007 wrote: »

Hey everyone,

Right, Met with Mr Watts today and went over my issues, He refused to admit that any of the figures quoted were wrong, However he asked me what I wanted to make me happy, I said that I would be happy to pay £5000 with some extra panels fitted (I know this is still overpriced but I just wanted it sorted), He said he couldn't do it that cheap but said that he will refund me £2000 and "put as many panels as he could fit on my roof" and in return he has asked me to remove any comments I have made on various forums relating to the company !!

Hiya. This suggests (smells) to me as if they know exactly what they are doing, so when 'caught' they try to clean up their mess.

Gstyle007 wrote: »

So overall It's going to cost £5659 and I think they will be able to fit another 6 possibly 7 panels, This is still more than it would cost from somewhere else but I am just happy to put this whole thing behind me.

Ok, looking at the bright side, assuming 6 panels, then twice the system for £2k less. So a huge improvement, from £5.1k/kWp to £1.89k/kWp.

Playing devil's advocate that price has been buying 4kWp systems lately, but that is the lower end of the prices, and if you came on originally complaining about paying £5.6k for 3kWp, then you wouldn't get too much sympathy, so ...... I can see why you'd settle on that.

Fingers crossed for 7 panels, though it does raise the question, why didn't they do that at the start? Smallest, quickest, cheapest (for them) system they could slap on, perhaps? Raises questions/concerns about their company ethos!

Gstyle007 wrote: »

He got the fitters to call round this evening to look at the roof and they are due to fit the extra panels next Tuesday. Mr Watts said the £2k should be in my bank tomorrow.

I will wait to see if everything he has promised comes true, but I must say if it does it has changed my opinion of the company!

Hope it arrives, and appreciate the position you are in, hence the need to re-evaluate your concerns on this open forum.

But if promises aren't kept, do seek further advice as this whole sorry episode reeks.

Gstyle007 wrote: »

I want to thank everyone on here for all your calculations and advice as I wouldn't have had a clue without you all, I will let you know when everything is finalised but for now I think we can put this down to a win for the little man !!!

Cheers.

Please do come back and update us all. And don't take some of the comments about it being your fault to seriously, as I said way back:

Martyn1981 wrote: »

I fully appreciate that you've tried to take this on the chin, and said that you were a mug, but before you let it go - where's the line drawn between a good salesman and a conman?

Whilst we all have a responsibility to review/assess what we are being told, the information should still be reasonably accurate, and honest.

Mart.