Reasonable cost

theboylard

Morning!

as has already been said, confirm it in writing (as in an actual letter!) stating that you are cancelling due to feeling pressured to buy by a special on the spot discount.
Just because it's cheaper elsewhere is not really grounds for cancellation of a contract - but pressure tactics are a big no no, with deals for signing on the day a huge warning that the company knows what they are doing is dodgy.

I presume as you have signed something, they will have left you with a copy? It should have their address and contact details, along with expected generation figures, electric savings and FiT payments.

Any extras thrown in? Monitor? Voltage optimiser? Cuddly toy?!

When Mr Surveyor turns up tomorrow, probably with a "Manager" in tow to try and talk you out of cancelling, make sure you stand your ground. Have you paid any deposit/money out yet? May be worthwhile speaking with your bank?

As none of us are selling you anything (although some may get a referal from an installer if they recommend a company, which should be declared?), you will get an honest view on any quotes/installation you may get.

Some guys here are very technical, their insights are amazing, some just have good and bad experiences to share, but everyone is here to help!

South Yorks will be covered by a number of companies, some good, some not so good!
Mart's advice early this morning is bang on the money - get lots of quotes but you first need to understand, in simple terms, what you can do with your roof/s , not sure about Tunnel's ISA advice though

One thing that will add a bit more to your quote is that it's a 3 storey house = extra scaffolding costs. This may make the north roof unviable so it may be worth just concentrating on the south roof?

Keep the info coming, we're here to help

Mojisola

theboylard wrote: »

as has already been said, confirm it in writing (as in an actual letter!) stating that you are cancelling due to feeling pressured to buy by a special on the spot discount.

Just because it's cheaper elsewhere is not really grounds for cancellation of a contract - but pressure tactics are a big no no, with deals for signing on the day a huge warning that the company knows what they are doing is dodgy.

AIUI, if you cancel within the allowed time frame, you don't need a reason, apart from having changed your mind.

I'd definitely send a letter - if you want to cover all bases, send two copies from two different post offices and get proof of posting.

I wouldn't allow the surveyor (and anyone else who turns up) into the house on Monday. You are going to be put under an enormous amount of pressure to continue with the contract.

Whatever you do, don't sign anything else "to show that you've cancelled/so the surveyor can prove that he visited the house/any other con".

groovyf

When I was looking into things early last year, the info, help and advice given by those on here was invaluable.
Despite having more panels on my two-storey NE roof, and less on my three-storey SW roof, it's till made economical and viable sense to kit both roofs out as that brought overall cost per kWh down.

Good luck with things, SamRose.

Martyn1981

SamRose wrote: »

Thank you all so much. I feel so much more informed and have e-mailed the company to inform of my cancellation and have outlined the reasons. I am really hoping that there is no comeback and that I know have the time to research fully and ensure we have the right panels at the right price!:j

Thank you for the thanks, it's always nice to know that any help given is appreciated.

Now regarding time ....... been pondering whether to mention this or not, as it may confuse or mislead, but probably worth it, so here goes.

The current FiT of 13.88p/kWh will be reduced on 1/4/15 by 3.5% to 13.39p/kWh.

DON'T PANIC DON'T RUSH!

It's not a significant amount, however, it may be mentioned by salespeople as a way of 'encouraging' you. Whilst it would be nice to get in before the cut, you should still wait/revue/learn before committing, that's more important.

Also note that the cut only applies to the FiT not to export or leccy savings, so is probably an overall cut of about 2%. That equates to about £100 on a £5k investment, so you've already saved a fortune, and there's always the chance an install will cost £100 less after April.

If everything went well, if you got decent quotes this week and if an install could be done by week 3 (or so) of March, if you can then get a complete and correct FiT application in ..... then a controlled rush is possible. But lots of if's, and I wouldn't concern yourself too much about it.

Just thought it worth mentioning in case hearing it threw you in the next week or so.

Mart.

theboylard

Good points from Martyn there - removes another sales tool!!
If, yes another one, it all goes to plan, and time is tight on registering your FiT application, nearly all of them take registration via email.

I filled my FiT app (dwonloaded pdf from Good Energy) on screen, then saved my copy and emailed it off.
But I lost the weekend's gen figures because I didn't submit until the Monday.

The FiT application starts when the FiT provider receives it - so if you post it, it could take ages!

Also choose your FiT provider carefully, some take ages to pay, others pay in under a week!! But you do get your money eventually

pinnks

I agree the comments made. I filled my application out on paper and spoke with E.On to talk through things I didn't quite understand and did this a few days before the install. I also prepared scanned copies of all documents like the EPC Certificate and prepared my email to submit everything. On the day of installation, which was 25th June, I filled in the remaining blanks on the application, e.g. serial numbers, signed and scanned it and the invoice and attached to my prepared draft email. 30 minutes after the installer left I was ready to send the mail.


My FiTs are running from 25th...

Martyn1981

Apologies to Sam for the diversion, but here's my FiT story on the WNW extension:

I got DNO approval to 'go large' on the 20/7/12, having e-mailed the completed forms to them at 3 that morning. The install took place on the 28th, thus securing me the 4-10kWp rate of 16.8p when the top FiT was 21p.

Having e-mailed my application to EDF, I had to wait 50mins for the delivered receipt to appear, then I was straight on the phone, and got them to go through it and confirm it was complete.

On the 1/8/12 the FiT dropped from 21p to 16p (the 16.8p to 14.4p) and the term was cut from 25 years to 20 years.

The last week of July 2012 was, to say the least, buttock tighteningly tense, and certainly not recommended.

Mart.

SamRose

hi guys,


sorry to bother you all again, you have ll been so helpful so far. We had another quote mid week from a firm who claim to be the uk's largest supplier of panels. they have quoted us £7700 for 12 panels (he said they are 260 each so just slightly above the 3KW) He also said that next to sunpower that they are the best of the market. He said that he had made a mistake when quoting and had not put the 5% vat on so they should have been over 8k but because he had already quoted £7700 he had to stick to it (said he'd stand the drop in his commission). Do you think we have mug across our forehead or does this all sound plausible. again we have signed (knowing this time we have a 14 day cooling off period), he said that we would receive the 56 page dossier the next day via e-mail (we did not) and that someone would ring us today to see if the service he gave us was ok (they did not)


thanks in advance guys


ps I asked him about the panels on ebay he said that they were made of a certain material (that's rubbish) that sunpower are made of the best material and the panels he was quoting on were hybrids (best of both)

pw22

Hi SamRose,

Firstly what type of panels are they quoting for? You should have been told the make and they should have given you datasheets for them.

The price of £7700 is still way too much for 12 panels (even using 260w panels which are becoming more popular nowadays).

It would also worry me that you have not received paperwork or a phone call as promised - if they can't look after you now as a potential customer, what sort of after sales service can you expect if you have any questions or problems?

ed110220

pw22 wrote: »

Hi SamRose,

Firstly what type of panels are they quoting for? You should have been told the make and they should have given you datasheets for them.

The price of £7700 is still way too much for 12 panels (even using 260w panels which are becoming more popular nowadays).

It would also worry me that you have not received paperwork or a phone call as promised - if they can't look after you now as a potential customer, what sort of after sales service can you expect if you have any questions or problems?

Much too much. 260W panels are nothing special, hardly any more expensive than 250W. Installers are advertising 12x 330W BenQ panels to give 4kW rather than the 3.1kW that you've been quoted for, for £6400. That's almost a third more electricity and a third more FIT for twenty years, for much less cash! They share the same design and spec as the Sunpower panels but have a typical 10 year warranty rather than Sunpower's 20 year warranty.

There are only three makers of high efficiency panels that will get you 4kW out of the space taken by 12 typical sized panels: BenQ, Panasonic and Sunpower. Any of those three are premium panels - unlike whatever those 260W panels are.

Disparaging something you don't have or would rather not sell is a typical dodgy sales ploy. Avoid.

Ed