Solar Panels only generating 59%. What should I do?

stevewinelover

Hi everyone,
We were told by the Project Solar engineer that our system is only generating 59% of what it should because of the incorrect placement of some of the panels. Project Solar rang to say that they would be writing to me with an offer to refund 41% of our initial outlay.

My question is - Do you think this is a breach of contract and is £2,869 (41% of £6,999) a good offer? If not, what should I be asking for?

We would not have invested in this system had we known at the time that it would have such a limited capability, even if it had been 59% of the price of a 'full' system.

I've been patient with them so far because they appear to want to address the issue, but I feel that I am due more than simply the % difference (between what it should generate and what it actually does) off the original price.

Background
In September 2013 I had Project Solar install 16 panels (4KW system) on my roof. There were problems on the day, because all of the panels couldn’t be fitted together, so four had to go on a sloping roof at right angles to the rest. They were all wired separately, rather than together, to maximise output that would otherwise have been affected when some of the panels were in shade.

After our first FIT payment I contacted Project Solar to say that the payment was very low, but they advised me to wait for a year to see what the annual total would be. If it was still low they would send out an engineer to inspect our system. After a year I asked them to send someone out, but it took months before they eventually agreed. In the meantime I had received £330 to cover the difference between our actual revenue for the year and what Project Solar guaranteed (for the first year) we should get.

We were quoted FIT and electricity savings of >£800 in the first year and subsequent increases for the next 19 (index linked to RPI), but it seems like the salesman got a bit overenthusiastic about the size of our roof, because we ended up with four panels on a sloping roof at right angles to the others. He also forgot to take into account that we have a big chimney that blocks most of the light from reaching the sloping roof. The engineer informed us that the four panels would rarely get enough light to generate anything at all.