Solar PV, system mis sold by E.On

iamnumpty

Last year we bought solar PV system from E.On. They quoted us
- GivEnergy Hybrid inverter with 5.2 kWh battery (5.2 kWh usable)
-Total system size of 4.680 kWp / 5.20 kWh
-Filled G99 form
-Received Specs from E.On subcontractor Laver Group for a GivEnergy Gen 2 Hybrid Inverter & Gen 2 Battery

The deal was through Creation Consumer Finance. Total cost parts + labour was tad under 10K. 
Since we were new to this we didn't realised what they fitted. In July 22, I raised concern about the supplied capacity vs quoted capacities.

1. They installed an inverter that tops out at 3.6 kWh and is not capable of 4.6 kWh let alone 5.2kWh. 
2. Consequently G99 application degraded to G98 without our knowledge or approval.
3. The batteries usable capacity is 80% Depth of Discharge that is usable capacity is not 5.2 kWh. Usable capacity is 4.2 kWh (rounded up).
4. Was sent specs for Gen 2 Inverter and Battery but both are Gen 1.

After repeated emails over technical explanations, E.On logged a case this year 9th Jan 2023. I am looking for some advise as to how long should I wait for E.On to resolve this and what other options do I have?
Can I raise a dispute with Creation Consumer Finance and stop making further payments until this is resolved? 
#E.On, #CreationConsumerFinance, #LaverGroup 

Ectophile

Don't get your kilowatt-hours (kWh) and kilowatts (kW) mixed up, as they are completely different things.

ArbitraryRandom

I'd suggest you've got three key questions which are a little unclear and would inform your options: 

1. Did you receive 'advice' or pre-sales information from Eon/the contractor which was inaccurate or misleading and which you relied on to inform your decision making? - i.e. was any of the information you were provided about the products/system inaccurate and were you given any assurances (that you can prove) that influenced your purchasing decision and have since been found to be false  

2. Did you receive the items specified and were they installed correctly? - i.e if they specified a specific brand or capacity, is this what you received. 

3. What is the relationship between Eon, the subcontractor, the finance group and you? - i.e. if the finance group 'loaned' you the money to buy the system from the sub-contractor and you are now paying back that loan then the finance company may have no liability when it comes to the actual issue you're having. 


 I would recommend asking Eon what their escalation process is for your complaint (I know the Energy Ombudsman can rule on green deal complaints, but I'm not sure about other schemes/offers)

born_again

You can't stop making payments. Not good for your credit history.
To take it forward via S75 with creation you are going to ned a 3rd party report that you have not received what you were billed for.

TBH, you would not be draining a LiFePO4 battery to 0%, defiantly not good for a long life.

https://www.itstechnologies.shop/products/givenergy-5kw-hybrid-complete-kit-to-charge-from-grid-or-solar-with-5-2kwh-battery

iamnumpty

Ectophile said:

Don't get your kilowatt-hours (kWh) and kilowatts (kW) mixed up, as they are completely different things.

Thanks for patronising.

Gerry1

iamnumpty said:

Ectophile said:

Don't get your kilowatt-hours (kWh) and kilowatts (kW) mixed up, as they are completely different things.

Thanks for patronising.

Not a good idea to be abusive when someone has given useful advice that you have confused your units.

You may find that future requests for assistance are ignored.

Reed_Richards

I don't know if this is relevant but just possibly you are in a similar situation:
https://www.claimexperts.co.uk/mis-sold-solar-panel-claims/barclays-mis-sold-solar-panel-claims/

Petriix

I guess the question is whether you have anything in writing which details the specifications of the system you thought you were getting vs what you actually received. I do find it incredibly frustrating that people go with these big companies at inflated prices rather than finding a reputable local installer but you'd at least expect to receive what you paid for. 

By the way, all the latest givenergy batteries supposedly do offer 100% depth of discharge. Really that just means that the battery has a larger capacity than advertised in order to allow the published capacity to be the usable part with a buffer at either end. 

QrizB

I can't see any evidence here that you've been mis-sold.

If you have a complaint it's that the installer hasn't completed the full scope of the contracted work.

Who was your contract with, E.ON or someone else?

iamnumpty said:

Last year we bought solar PV system from E.On. They quoted us
... In July 22

When you say "last year", do you mean 2022 or 2023?

iamnumpty said:

After repeated emails over technical explanations, E.On logged a case this year 9th Jan 2023.

Do you mean "this year, Jan 2024" or "last year, Jan 2023"?

pete-20-11

QrizB said:

I can't see any evidence here that you've been mis-sold.

If you have a complaint it's that the installer hasn't completed the full scope of the contracted work.

Who was your contract with, E.ON or someone else?

iamnumpty said:

Last year we bought solar PV system from E.On. They quoted us
... In July 22

When you say "last year", do you mean 2022 or 2023?

iamnumpty said:

After repeated emails over technical explanations, E.On logged a case this year 9th Jan 2023.

Do you mean "this year, Jan 2024" or "last year, Jan 2023"?

There's a few people complaining about this on GivEnergy's community forum

Eon sold it as a 5.2kWh usable battery by mistake.

5.2kWh is the total capacity and when you take away the safety buffers at the top and bottom, it's actually 4.1kWh ish. 

Eon are offering compensation to customers now, although not sure if that includes people on finance deals. 

GivEnergy have also offered special firmware that takes the usable capacity of these batteries further into the protected part, but that might mean the battery doesn't last as long.

So defo seems like a case of misselling, but perhaps complicated by having a finance company in the middle.