Starting the solar journey

LateStarter

4 years ago I got a quote for solar panels, and then Covid happened. Well I bit the bullet for the second time and filled in a form on https://www.theecoexperts.co.uk to say I was interested in being contacted by a quote. I then got a phone call saying this would involve a home visit to speak to partner and myself, and would last about 90 minutes. Is this normal? It feels a bit like the last time a double glazing came 'round, to promise a discount if we "signed that day".

How do you figure out who to contact for quotes? Or can anyone recommend a company who serves North Oxfordshire?

jimjames

Yes it does sound a bit like double glazing. Genuine firm will come round measure up and give you a quote later in writing. Not saying that no genuine firm would act as you've suggested but it's highly unlikely in my view that a non-pressure sales company would require partner to be present.

Magnitio

About 30 minutes should be sufficient to check your loft, measure the roof and work out roughly where everything will go. Quote then follows later. 90 minutes with partner present does sound like it's allowing time for a pressure sale.

Clive_Woody

Personally I would ensure partner was absent (with their consent), but I can be quite a belligerent person.

Any hard sell and let them know that you need time to consider and discuss with partner 

andyg9053

Do your homework first. Have a guess at how many panels will fit. Research on here for average prices. Do you want extras, ev charger hot water diverter. Will you need pigeon netting, have nearby houses got the netting. 7 years ago I had 4 companies round. 2 we’re definitely hard sell double glazing style who didn’t check the roof, take measurements etc and weren’t knowledgable on the whole subject

Alnat1

Simply tell them you're waiting until you have at least 3 quotes to make a decision and the other 2 companies haven't been to survey yet.

Hopefully this will be the truth and is what you are going to do.

powerful_Rogue

Sounds like the hard sell to me. Company I used did everything via Google Earth/Street view to give me a price. They then came round and carried out a survey which lasted about 20 minutes.

yp70479

When I was looking  (it was a year ago) most companies didn't want to send an engineer round to survey util they had got passed the first  "expressed an interest" stage. They don't need to be at the property to measure your roof - they do it via google earth. A quick phone call to give an idea what you are interested (just panels, or panels and battery, ev charger hot water diverter, etc)They can then give you a rough estimate of how many panels will fit and what it will cost. If you progress further they can send an engineer round to check your roof strength and electrics and whether they can get scaffolding up - although some just ask you take a lot of photos of your consumer unit - the outside of the property etc. I agree - 90mins for a visit sound hard sell - avoid at all costs.

jrp123

We had this 90 minute session.  I was sceptical at first, but actually it was the company's way of ensuring you knew what you were getting into and checking that you understood that you wouldn't get FIT, that batteries work for some but not others and looking at current consumption and property usage.  Worked well in the end and we are happy with our installation.

Screwdriva

It's quite common for surveyors to visit installation sites (I used to do these when I installed 15 years ago) but a recent phenomenon is when non-technical sales people visit (sales people with very limited training) properties.

A politely rapid exit is recommended if you hear variations of any of the following:

1) "Nah, don't worry about the brands. We use top tier stuff" (but they don't specify the exact components they have spec'd)

2) "I can get you a special deal if we sign today"

3) "The price is great in this market...there's no need to compare quotes"

propnut

I contacted a company at the outset of my journey who also had the "we need to speak to both of you" requirement. Having flashes of beachfront timeshare salesmen I gave them a wide berth. Glad it wored out for you though.