ENERGY bills are soaring with average costs expected to hit £3,244 in October.
Could solar panels be the answer?
Some households have saved hundreds of pounds by installing them — but it could take years to recoup costs and others have had difficulty selling homes with panels.
Elliot Clark from the Centre for Sustainable Energy says: “Solar panels are getting cheaper by the year.
“But families need to find out how much it might cost to install them and what they could save, before they jump in.”
One family, who live near Woking in Surrey, is saving £70 a month after installing panels.
Natalie Ward, 36, husband David, 40, an operations manager, daughter Harper, four and son Ethan, three, have seen their monthly bill drop from £90 to £20.
The Wards took the plunge with solar energy in March this year, after signing up to Surrey County Council’s scheme to reduce costs for households.
They sold a second car to find the £8,500 for 16 panels, a 6KW battery, an immersion diverter which heats their hot water using leftover electricity, plus bird-proofing for the panels.
They now use so little from the grid that, even though their electricity has risen from 17p to 27p per kilowatt hour, their energy bill has plummeted.
Natalie, who runs her own business, Latch’d, selling active wear for pregnant and breastfeeding mums, says: “It took less than a day to install and we’ve saved a fortune.
"Doing it via a council scheme took the fear out of it, and it’s great to think we are doing something positive for the environment.
“It makes the most sense to use as much energy as we can ourselves rather than sell it back to the grid, so we’re strict about using appliances in the middle of the day.”
But Natalie acknowledges they won’t be able to totally escape the rise in energy bills in the colder months.
She optimistically estimates they will recoup the cost of the panels in around five years.
The Energy Saving Trust suggests it could take 18 years to get back the average £6,500 cost of buying and installing panels, based on saving around £276 a year on bills and getting £95 from selling on excess energy.
Another organisation, The Eco Experts, suggests the average household could pay off £5,420 of panels in just over ten years, with the £534 annual savings.
The big financial benefit of solar panels comes through using the electricity to power appliances in your home.
The big financial benefit of solar panels comes through using the electricity to power appliances in your home.
Any excess can be stored in a battery — which costs at least £2,000 — or sold to the grid.
But the old feed-in tariff closed for new customers three years ago and the new Smart Export Guarantee, set by energy companies, is far less generous. While installers may promise big returns, doing your sums is key.
The Energy Saving Trust’s solar panel calculator will give you an idea of how long it will take to break even.
If you move house in the next ten years, you may not make all your money back.
A recent NatWest report found 13 per cent of prospective homeowners consider solar panels essential.
But some sellers say having the panels hampered their house sales.
When teacher Ray Coe and wife Elaine, a learning support assistant, sold up in 2019, they faced a year of trouble.
“We got an asking price offer on the house straight away, but it fell through because of problems with the solar panels.
"When we got them in 2012, they were installed for free. In return the installers took all the income from the feed-in tariff.
"We benefited from the fall in our electricity bills.
"But it turned out they hadn’t been properly registered, and the original firm had gone bust.
Do your own research — check reviews of traders online and make sure they’re signed up to consumer protection schemes.
"The company that took over refused to sign the required form.
“In the end, we had to pay a solicitor £1,000 to sort it out and accept an offer £15,000 lower.
“While we’d saved £200 a year by having the panels installed, we hadn’t made enough to cover the fall in our sale price.”
Rae Radford, 59, an author from Broadstairs, Kent, also faced problems when selling.
Nine sales fell through because buyers were put off by the solar panel firm effectively owning five per cent of the roof space, under a 25-year contract signed by the previous owner.
Like the Coes, the original installation firm no longer existed, complicating things further.
Rae says: “It was a nightmare.”
It’s also crucial to ensure you don’t fall for scammers.
Between the end of 2020 and April 2022, reports to Citizen’s Advice about solar panel-related scams almost doubled.
Gillian Cooper, from Citizens Advice, warned: “Do your own research — check reviews of traders online and make sure they’re signed up to consumer protection schemes.”
Always get quotes from three different installers.
The Microgeneration Certificate Scheme (MCS) provides a list of accredited installers, while you can search by area on the Trustmark website. Installers can also sign up to the Renewable Energy Consumer Code.
Any arrangement where you don’t own the panels upfront should be treated with caution.
The best route is to buy them outright. If you’d have to get a loan, do your sums, and don’t simply take what an installer tells you at face value.
Consumer expert Martyn James says: “People need to be wary about pushy salespeople.
“I’ve seen countless cases of mis-sales, from unsuitable insulation to solar panels that don’t deliver the promised returns.”
You may be able to get a grant to help with the cost. The Government has cut VAT on panels.
Its £4billion Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) fund could particularly help those on low incomes whose homes have poor energy ratings.
Ask your local council and energy company what financial help is available.
ELLIOT CLARK advises looking at whether you might save more by getting your home better insulated instead.
He says: “Insulating your walls may not sound as sexy as creating your own electricity, but you lose half your heat through your walls and loft, so it may pay to focus on improving the fabric of your home first.
“If your home is leaking hot air, you’d be best getting that fixed before getting solar panels.”
According to the Energy Saving Trust, for around £240, professional draught-proofing of windows, doors, floors and skirting boards could save £95 a year.
While cavity wall insulation, suitable for most homes built between the 1920s and 1980s, could save around £285 a year on energy bills for a semi-detached house, making back £1,200 in insulation costs in five years or less.
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