In brief
Check any firm on the MCS register for solar PV, confirm it belongs to a consumer code such as RECC or HIES, and look it up on Companies House. Get written quotes after a proper survey, compare them line by line, keep any deposit modest and hold on to every certificate and warranty once the work is done.
Start with the MCS register
MCS certifies firms that fit small renewable systems, with solar PV and home batteries among the technologies it covers. Firms certified under it agree to work to its installation standards, and each system they fit receives an MCS certificate. That certificate matters later: export tariffs under the SEG scheme require it, and a buyer’s solicitor will usually ask for it when the house is sold.
Look up any firm on the MCS installer search before you go further. Check that the business name on the register matches the name on the quote, and that solar PV is among the technologies it is certified for. If a battery is part of the job, look for that too. Certification can lapse, so check again shortly before signing rather than relying on a check made weeks earlier, and treat a logo on a website or van as a claim to verify, not as proof.
A consumer code: RECC or HIES
Firms certified under MCS are expected to belong to a consumer code approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute. For solar, the two most often seen are RECC and HIES. A consumer code sets rules on how firms sell, what goes in a contract, how deposits are protected and how complaints are handled, and it gives access to an independent body that can rule on a dispute.
Membership can be checked on each code’s own website. Ask the firm which code it belongs to, look it up, and read the code’s summary of what it expects of members. That summary is a useful yardstick for the sales visit itself.
Companies House
A limited company’s record on Companies House costs nothing to view and says a good deal. Check that the company is active, when it was formed, who its directors are and whether its accounts and confirmation statements have been filed on time. Make sure the company number on the quote matches the record. If the directors have run several similar companies that closed in quick succession, that is worth thinking about before handing over a deposit.
Not every firm is a limited company; sole traders and partnerships do not appear on the register. For them, the MCS and consumer-code checks carry more weight, along with a clear business address.
A written quote after a proper survey
A reliable quote follows a survey of the actual roof, either in person or with detailed measurements and photographs. It should be in writing and should set out, at the least:
- capacity in kWp, the panel count, and which manufacturer and model of panel, inverter and any battery is proposed;
- a layout drawing showing which slopes are used;
- an estimate of yearly generation, with the method and any shading allowance explained;
- the access plan, electrical work and grid paperwork included in the price;
- the payment stages, the deposit and how it is protected;
- every warranty, with its length and who stands behind it.
Get at least two quotes and give yourself time to compare them. A price that is only available if you sign today is a sales technique, not a reason to sign. Typical prices by size, and the extras that move them, are on solar costs in Crewe.
Quotes made from a screen
Some firms now price a roof from aerial images and a phone call before anyone visits. That can be a quick way to get a first figure, and there is nothing wrong with it as a starting point. It is not a substitute for a survey. Aerial images can miss a chimney stack’s true height, a neighbour’s new extension or the condition of the timbers, and on a narrow Crewe terrace those details decide the layout. Before signing a contract, ask for someone to measure the roof, look in the loft and check the consumer unit and supply, and for the quote to be confirmed or revised afterwards.
What to compare between quotes
Headline prices are the least useful comparison. Work out each quote’s price per kWp, then look at what sits behind it: the inverter’s rating and number of inputs, whether panel-level electronics are included where shade is an issue, how the panels are fixed to your type of roof, and whether scaffold and consumer-unit work are in the price. Compare the yearly generation estimates too, and if one is far higher than the other for the same roof, ask both firms to explain. The share of output each firm expects the household to use is explained on export and self-use.
Questions particular to Crewe homes
- A listed railway cottage. Ask how the firm will handle planning permission and Listed Building Consent, and whether it will provide drawings and product details for the application. Work should not start until both are granted; see the railway cottages page.
- A narrow terrace. Ask where the scaffold will stand, who applies for any pavement licence and how the cable will reach the meter. Terraced houses covers what a survey should include.
- A flat. Ask whether the firm has spoken to the building owner and which supply the panels will feed.
- A rented home. The landlord is the customer; tenants and landlords can read landlords and solar before talking to firms.
- Any home. Ask whether the design falls under G98 or needs a G99 application first; grid connection explains the difference.
Planning questions for any address are covered on planning rules for Crewe.
Deposits and paying in stages
Paying a deposit is normal; paying the whole price before work starts is not. Keep the deposit modest, ask in writing how it is protected if the firm stops trading, and arrange for the balance to fall due once the system is installed, commissioned and handed over with its paperwork. Consumer codes have rules on deposits, so a firm that cannot explain its arrangements is a firm to question. Paying part of the cost by credit card can add protection under consumer credit law. Installed solar currently carries 0% VAT under HMRC’s VAT Notice 708/6, so check the quote has not added VAT at the standard rate.
Sales practices to walk away from
- Discounts that expire at the end of the visit.
- Claims of a grant or scheme you cannot find on the council’s own pages; the real routes are on grants and schemes.
- Promises of a fixed financial benefit or a figure for how quickly the system pays for itself.
- Reluctance to put details in writing, or pressure to sign before you have checked the registers.
- Requests for most or all of the price up front.
A contract signed in your home usually comes with a 14-day cancellation period, and the firm should explain it in writing. Use it if you feel rushed.
If something goes wrong
Raise any problem with the firm in writing first, describing what is wrong and what you would like done, and keep copies of everything. If that does not settle it, the firm’s consumer code offers its own complaints and dispute process, and MCS has its own route for complaints about certified firms. Warranty claims for panels, inverters and batteries usually go through the firm that fitted them, so keep its details with the paperwork.
Paperwork to keep
When the work is finished, the firm should hand over a pack. Keep it together, because a buyer will ask for it one day and an export tariff depends on part of it:
- The MCS certificate.
- The electrical installation certificate and evidence the work was notified under building regulations.
- A copy of the G98 notification or the G99 approval from the network operator, which you can identify through the ENA postcode search.
- Warranties for panels, inverter and any battery, plus the workmanship warranty and any insurance that backs it.
- The layout drawing, commissioning records and user manuals.
- For a listed building, the planning permission and Listed Building Consent.
Why each document matters at sale time is explained on buying a Crewe home with solar. Short answers to common questions are on the FAQ page, and a question about a quote you have been given can go through the question form.