Which Survey

[TaffyDuck]

This months Which magazine has a survey saying 84% of people trust electricians, and 22% trust Solar Installers. Dont shoot the messenger!

 

[ktech]

And, your point / question, is ?

 

[Gavin A]

presumably that the industry is getting as bad a reputation as the double glazing industry.

 

[TaffyDuck]

presumably that the industry is getting as bad a reputation as the double glazing industry.

Seems that way, Double Glazing was at 26%

 

[sedgy34]

I'm both spark and solar add both figures together lol

 

[Noshocks]

My vans dont even mention solar on their sides, as far as I see its a good fit as an additional service for an electrical contractor, I see plenty of shiny 2011 plate vans with solar... parked up outside houses day after day, glad I dident start a seperate business entity during the boom if this is what customers think.

As an aside, I have noticed the largest electrical contractor in my town with twenty plus vans have now removed the 'add on' solar stickers they had previously put on, they are still MCS, perhaps they dont want to be tarred with solar the brush.

 

[SRE]

It's a sad state of affairs when solar has a worse reputation than double glazing but I can see where it's come from, I lost a job this week (one of the few properties that would hit a D) to a salesman clearly talking through his bottom. He quote 2k over the going price to a guy who used to teach electrical engineering and still sparks as a sideline in retirement. From what I understand he was hassled for the sale from start to finish. Same firm didn't use scaffolding on 4kwp installations in houses in the same area - when challenged the salesman said all staff had been sacked that were doing that.

What can you do? Really nice guy but taken in by the sales pitch. I'm not lowering myself to their standards - principles cost money though :-(

 

[FB.]

I agree with the results of the survey. I don't trust most solar installers when it comes to telling the truth about the rate of return achievable from the investment - and the convenient ignoring that the money can never be got back - unlike if money sits in a bank, earns interest and can be withdrawn at any time (unless you're a RBS/NatWest customer!).

The problem is that people with often electrical and not fiancial qualifications are quoting extravagant returns on investment which cannot possibly be achieved. There is an incentive to do this in order to "wow" the customer in order to generate a sale.
A standardised approach to sales technique would be better (not just the SAP), and should give more confidence, such as:

The inflation/cost increase projections not reflecting just the past year's change in prices but reflecting multi-year trends rather than short-term blips (my cost per kWh is actually down by 5% year-over-year: how about projecting electricity prices to delcine?) .


All quotes use the same rate for RPI inflation.

All quotes use the same rate of increase for electricty bills.

Customers provided with FACTS on how good or bad the panels/inverters they're choosing actually are IN THE REAL WORLD, (not the "on paper" stats which seem to be meaningless) rather than trusting to luck.
There are huge online resources available if I want to buy a new car, or a new TV - I could find a thousand reviews of the product and get a rough idea of how good/bad it really is.
But with such a vast range of panels and inverters available, and no publicly available performance statsistics, how on earth can a customer choose? It's like some secret cartel with information which must never be made public.

Every Installer tells the customer that their panels are by far the best (best for profit margins or generating a sale, no doubt).
I don't mind paying more (or less) for panels, if someone can show me PROOF that it's worth paying extra. As for the much-hyped Sanyo panels, they seem to nowhere near justify the cost. I note that the rent-a-roofers use LDK (HomeSun) and other cheapish panels - perhaps they're giving a hidden message that extra expense doesn't reap much extra reward.

 

[jason121]

Prices are well below the £7000.00 in my area and the solarworld rep said its not all about cost.

 

[moggy1968]

Actually I think you'll find the people quoting the ridiculous returns are salesmen, not electricians

 

[infinity]

^^^ totally agree with Moggy, Won a job this week, i quoted £5k for 8 panels. about 8 yr return.
Sales guy before me (women sorry) quoted £13k dropped to £12k!! and gave a return in 7 yrs! As i said to them HOW is that possible,

Unbelievable. its not the electricians i know how to calculate basic sums. its the double glazing salesmen that are completely full of ....

 

[Octopus]

Did the article list other trades people?

 

[FB.]

^^^ totally agree with Moggy, Won a job this week, i quoted £5k for 8 panels. about 8 yr return.
Sales guy before me (women sorry) quoted £13k dropped to £12k!! and gave a return in 7 yrs! As i said to them HOW is that possible,

Unbelievable. its not the electricians i know how to calculate basic sums. its the double glazing salesmen that are completely full of S*@T!

Yes, I agree that may well be the case. When I was quoted for 4kWp solar (43p eligible), I had two companies quoting about the same, while the third company with the rep in a posh suit, and a big posh car, quoted about 30% more for identical kit.
But the fact that there are salesmen out there puts the rest of you in a bad light.

When I got quotes for solar, I was a bit harsh - stand-off-ish, slightly rude and sarcastic - on the guys who came round because I thought they'd be like double glazing salesmen, so I treated them with scepticism and did my best to ruffle them up a bit and get them on the back foot with awkward questions.
I have friends/family who also think the same, and they are interested in solar but are afraid of double-glazing pressure sales or other gimmick tactics.

In fact, the suit-and-posh-car company have called me about three times since I had my installation in winter, trying to sell me PV (which they know I had installed by another company!) and trying to sell me other products such as hot water and heat pumps.

 

[SolarCity]

This thread depresses me greatly. I wonder what REAL make of this abject failure?

 

[Energetic]

Can we do a survey on how many solar installers trust which magazine?